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Recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Australian Constitution

Recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Australian Constitution. Race and the Constitution 1.

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Recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Australian Constitution

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  1. Recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Australian Constitution

  2. Race and the Constitution 1 • “… if by the law of any State all persons of any race are disqualified from voting at elections for the more numerous House of the Parliament of the State, then, in reckoning the number of people of the State or of the Commonwealth, persons of that race resident in that state shall not be counted.” The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia, Section 25, Provision as to races disqualified from voting, p. 12.

  3. Race and the Constitution 2 • “51. The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws for the peace, order, and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to:-(xxvi) The people of any race for whom it is deemed necessary to make special laws:” The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia, Section 51. (xxvi), pp. 17-18.

  4. The first chapter missing • The Constitution reflects values and beliefs of 1901 • It was thought then that Aboriginal people were “a dying race.”

  5. ‘The Silence Separates Us’

  6. What is the Constitution • The Australian Constitution is the foundation of Australia’s legal and political system. • It is our highest law - the set of rules by which Australia is governed.

  7. The silence in our Constitution • Was drafted and adopted over a century ago • Was developed by a narrow cross section of society • No Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people were involved in the drafting or the consultations that took place at the time • Our Constitution reflected the dominant historical, economic, social and political aspirations of the day.

  8. The silence in our Constitution

  9. Campaign Background

  10. The Expert Panel Professor Patrick Dodson and Mark Leibler AC deliver the report to the former Prime Minister Julia Gillard

  11. The Expert Panel Report 1. Recognise the prior occupation and continuing cultures, languages and heritage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. 2.Acknowledge the continuing relationship of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to these lands and waters. 3.Remove the ability of States and Territories to bar certain races from voting [section 25]. 4.Remove the capacity of governments to make laws to the detriment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples or the people of any race [section 51(xxvi)]. 5.Insert a protection against discrimination on the basis of race, colour or ethnicity.

  12. Changing the Constitution • A Vote by the people – ‘A Referendum’ • To be successful a referendum must receive a double majority. • A double majority means a ‘yes’ vote by: 1.The majority of Australian voters across all States and Territories; and 2.A majority of States

  13. Characteristics of a successful referendum • Multiparty support • Popular Ownership • Popular Awareness

  14. The Referendum • Timing – most likely to succeed • Act of Recognition • Sunset Period • Recognise

  15. Uniting in a profound way

  16. A chance to unite “Constitutional Recognition is a chance to unite Australians after living apart from one another for so many chapters” Michael Long

  17. A Chance to Unite “Constitutional recognition of the First Australians would be good not only for our own heads and hearts, but also for the nation’s soul.” Yankunytjatjara woman DR LOWITJA O’DONOGHUE “This is much more than a question of symbolism, this is a question of national wellbeing and national identity. It's about coming to terms with who we are as a nation and deciding who we want to be in the future. ” NOEL PEARSON, Cape York Institute

  18. A Chance to Unite “I'm a big supporter of this. It should be a unifying moment for Australia. It should be a healing moment for Australia. And that's what I want to bring about. ”

  19. A Chance to Unite TONY ABBOTT, Prime Minister

  20. A Chance to Unite “Constitutional reform will make us a better nation - more at peace with our past, and more confident and united as we face the future together. ”

  21. A Chance to Unite JULIA GILLARD – Former Prime Minister

  22. A Chance to Unite “I think we have a duty to do the right thing. So I'm encouraging you, as a person you know is pretty conservative, to move yourself to the position where we move this nation forward as one. ”

  23. A Chance to Unite BARNABY JOYCE, Deputy Leader of the Nationals

  24. A Chance to Unite “What a great thing for Australia it would be if, at last, we recognised Australia’s First Peoples in our Constitution - it's part of who we are as a nation. ”

  25. A Chance to Unite CHRISTINE MILNE, Greens Leader

  26. Spreading the Word

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