National Reconciliation Week (NRW) is an incredibly vital week in our calendars!
It’s a welcome invitation to reflect, revisit, and make a more concerted effort to focus on reconciliation for this week and all year round.
National Reconciliation Week 2023: ‘Be a Voice for Generations’
The National Reconciliation Week theme for 2023, ‘Be a Voice for Generations, ‘ urges everyone to act today for a more reconciled country.
Everyone – no matter their age or status in society – can play a positive part towards reconciliation and building a unified Australia we can all be proud of.
This NRW, we explore how to be a voice of reconciliation for your generation – and those to come.
What is Reconciliation?
We often hear about reconciliation, but what does this mean, and what does it look like in action in our communities?
Reconciliation is about strengthening relationships between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous peoples for the benefit of all Australians.
For many, Australia’s colonial history is characterised by devastating land dispossession, violence, and racism. Over the last half-century, many significant steps towards reconciliation have been taken to address Australia’s violent past and the intergenerational marginalisation of First Nations people throughout the country.
Reconciliation is based and measured on five dimensions:
- Historical Acceptance
- Race Relations
- Equality & Equity
- Institutional Integrity
- Unity
Read more about these five dimensions, what they mean and the campaigns underway around each of them here.
The theme for NRW 2023 is a welcome reminder that reconciliation is an ongoing journey. While generations of Australians have fought hard for meaningful change, future gains are likely to take just as much, if not more, effort.
What is National Reconciliation Week?
NRW is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements and explore how we can contribute to reconciliation in Australia.
The dates for NRW remain the same each year; 27 May to 3 June. These dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey— the successful 1967 referendum and the High Court Mabo decision.
As we enter NRW 2023, we should all remember that reconciliation must live in the hearts, minds, and actions as we move forward, creating a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community and First Nations peoples.
How to ‘Be a Voice for Generations’
This year’s theme, Be a Voice for Generations, encourages us to use our power, words and actions to create a better, more just Australia for everyone.
This National Reconciliation Week, our actions must be as loud as our voices.
NRW Campaign website has put together a great list of ways of action to use your voice and your power to support reconciliation. Below we’ve collated some of our favourites, but check out the complete list here.
- Be a VOICE for Listening: First Nations peoples have a long legacy of speaking up for their communities, but their voices have been excluded or buried under the voices of non-Indigenous people. Turn down the noise: listen before you speak. Be an active ally.
- Be a VOICE for Learning: The complete history of colonisation and its impact on First Nations communities are only partially taught in schools. Even though it’s hard, educate yourself and stand up for better education in schools. Knowledge is power; learning this history is vital to acknowledgement and reconciliation.
- Be a VOICE for Reform: Despite making up less than 6% of the population, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are the most incarcerated people in the world, proportionally. We must learn and understand why this is so and Amplify the calls of Change the Record, Raise the Age , and Family Matters campaigns.
Keep Learning: A Voice to Parliament Referendum
You might have been hearing a bit about A Voice to Parliament in recent weeks, and NRW is an excellent opportunity to learn more about what this means and why it’s essential.
First Nations people and bodies have called for a voice for nearly 100 years.
A Voice to Parliament will give Indigenous communities a way to help inform policy and legal decisions impacting their lives.
Embedding a Voice in the Constitution would recognise the special place of First Nations people in our history – but importantly, it would also mean that successive Governments can’t shut it down.
For A Voice to be added to Parliament, there will be a referendum where Australians can have their say.
There are lots of resources available to learn more about this critical issue, and it’s vital to understand the nuances of what having A Voice to Parliament can mean for our communities:
- Learn more about an Indigenous Voice to Parliament through the Interactive Digital Learning Platform at ulurustatement.org
- Read information on the Uluru Statement from the Heart at: ulurustatement.org
- Find out more from the Yes Campaign
- Read the Indigenous Voice Co-design report
A Voice to Parliament will be a significant step towards creating a stronger voice for generations and reconciliation for years to come.
