The Festival of Dangerous Ideas has long set the standard for sharing challenging ideas. But what exactly does this term mean? To me, ‘sharing challenging ideas’ means communicating thought-provoking concepts that confront the values and morals of society. Academic George Santayana offers us this wisdom, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” In the context of the Australian narrative, nothing has been more pertinent than our relationships and recognition of the traditional custodians of this land. How we reconcile our history and our national identity has been the topic of discourse for the greater part of five decades.
On 26th October 2017, the 32nd anniversary of Uluru being returned to its traditional owners, the Turnbull government formally rejected the key recommendation of the Referendum Council. The recommendation proposed the “Makarrata Commission”, which would advise Parliament on laws which impact Indigenous Australians, as well as supervise …show more content…
Keating examined the truth within the context of re-evaluating Australia’s narrative. He categorically stated that the truth “is a test of … how well we know the land we live in. How well we know our history. How well we recognise the fact that, as complex as our contemporary identity is, it cannot be separated from Aboriginal Australia.” Combined with the anaphora of “how well we”, Keating used truth to exacerbate the need for action. It also forever changed the discourse of reconciliation by developing an ‘us and them’ narrative: ‘Us’ being ‘non-Indigenous Australians’, ‘them’ being Indigenous Australians. This reinforced the onus on ‘us’ to recognise the legacy of Indigenous dispossession left by European settlers, re-evaluate our national identity and embrace Indigenous Australians as valued members of
On 26th October 2017, the 32nd anniversary of Uluru being returned to its traditional owners, the Turnbull government formally rejected the key recommendation of the Referendum Council. The recommendation proposed the “Makarrata Commission”, which would advise Parliament on laws which impact Indigenous Australians, as well as supervise …show more content…
Keating examined the truth within the context of re-evaluating Australia’s narrative. He categorically stated that the truth “is a test of … how well we know the land we live in. How well we know our history. How well we recognise the fact that, as complex as our contemporary identity is, it cannot be separated from Aboriginal Australia.” Combined with the anaphora of “how well we”, Keating used truth to exacerbate the need for action. It also forever changed the discourse of reconciliation by developing an ‘us and them’ narrative: ‘Us’ being ‘non-Indigenous Australians’, ‘them’ being Indigenous Australians. This reinforced the onus on ‘us’ to recognise the legacy of Indigenous dispossession left by European settlers, re-evaluate our national identity and embrace Indigenous Australians as valued members of