Unhappy Australia Day and the distractions blocking true Reconciliation

Dutton’s rhetoric, steeped in denial and a child-like view of the world, clings to an idealised version of Australia that erases the voices of Indigenous Australians.

January 26 has, yet again, become the annual circus of cultural and political conflict, and the intent for it to be a “day of national unity” becomes more distant every year. Instead of collective reflection, the day has evolved into social divisions, mainly created by conservative politicians, media outlets, and their supporting institutions, and this has transformed January 26 into a conflict zone in the broader culture wars – a social conflict not searching for resolution but constant agitation.

For many in the Indigenous community, January 26 is not a day of celebration but of mourning, a day that signifies colonial dispossession, violence, and the erasure of cultural heritage – Invasion Day is a more suitable name, as it serves as a reminder of the enduring inequalities and injustices faced by First Nations people, even if no federal government will ever officially recognise the day in this way.

However, for many other Australians, the day’s historical and cultural significance remains nebulous: some associate it with Captain James Cook's landing in 1770; others with the federation of Australia in 1901, and many others still view it as nothing more than an opportunity for a public holiday. These different perceptions suggest a deeper historical amnesia and lack of consensus about what, if anything, Australia Day is supposed to signify.

The official recognition of January 26 as a national holiday is a relatively recent development, formalised in 1994. Before this, the day was celebrated on different dates, reflecting the absence of a unified national identity around the occasion and, aside from nationalists, there isn’t a universal acceptance or great enthusiasm: here today, gone tomorrow and forgotten. Instead, the day has become increasingly polarised, led by conservatives such as Opposition Leader Peter Dutton – surely, a five-star general in the ongoing culture wars – and the Murdoch press, who wield it as a rhetorical weapon in their broader ideological struggle that no one else really cares about.

Dutton’s rhetoric about Australia Day as a “day of shame” for those who refuse to celebrate it, despite the millions on the streets across Australia who did just that, reveals no genuine concern for national unity – Dutton actually refused to attend Australia Day events in Canberra – but a calculated attempt to inflame division for political gain. And not to be outdone by the insanity of her leader, Sussan Ley compared the arrival of the First Fleet to Elon Musk’s space mission to Mars and claimed that it was “not an invasion”, or even an intention to destroy or to pillage, even though that’s exactly what the First Fleet did back in 1788.

This weaponised January 26 is part of a larger conservative project to entrench cultural narratives that prioritise uncritical patriotism and historical whitewashing. For Dutton, the day represents an opportunity to rally his base against perceived threats to Australian identity, whether these come in the form of supermarket chains choosing not to stock Australia Day merchandise or vague notions of people being “afraid to celebrate”. Who is actually afraid? Where are these people? What are they afraid of?

These grievances, often manufactured or exaggerated, serve as distractions from substantial issues facing the nation, and allow conservatives to frame themselves as defenders of “tradition” and “national pride”, while avoiding meaningful engagement with the historical and ongoing injustices experienced by Indigenous Australians.

The insistence on treating January 26 only as a joyous occasion, festooned with balloons, streamers, flags, barbecues, and beach parties, reflects a refusal to understand or deal with the complexities of Australia’s history. Dutton has a childlike fantasy – a superficial celebration that ignores the deeper wounds and contradictions embedded in the nation’s history, an approach that is not only insensitive but counterproductive. By insisting on uncritical celebration, conservatives alienate large segments of the population who want to see the day as an opportunity for reflection, dialogue, and acknowledgment of historical wrongs. In doing so, they perpetuate the very divisions they claim to oppose.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s recent framing of Australia Day as an “opportunity to celebrate everything we’ve built together” and to be “optimistic for the future” provides a more conciliatory tone but still falls short of addressing the underlying tensions, even if Dutton’s claims of “a day of shame” are nowhere to be found in Albanese’s comments. While optimism and unity are great aspirations, they cannot be achieved without confronting the darker chapters of Australia’s history and the structural inequalities that persist today. For many, the gap between the idealised and saccharine vision of Australia Day and the lived realities of the marginalised and the excluded makes the celebration hollow, if not offensive.

The shame and division conservatives claim does not come from public opposition to the day itself but from their own efforts to enforce a singular, exclusionary narrative about its meaning. Their fixation on cultural grievances – whether it be over supermarket shelves or imagined fears of celebration – reflects an unwillingness to engage in the difficult but necessary work of national Reconciliation. Until this work is undertaken, January 26 will remain a contested symbol, emblematic not of unity but of the unresolved conflicts at the centre of the Australian identity.

A contested legacy of division and historical amnesia

For Indigenous Australians, January 26 is a devastating part of their history. The arrival of the First Fleet in 1788 saw the imposition of British law, the seizure of land under the doctrine of terra nullius – against the specific directions provided to Governor Phillip by King George – and the destruction of Indigenous cultures over time. Resistance, often portrayed by conservatives as a modern phenomenon, is deeply rooted in Australian history: as early as 1938, the Day of Mourning drew attention to the injustices that January 26 represents.

Despite the historically inaccuracy and insensitivity of a reenactment of the First Fleet’s landing and British–Indigenous encounters, the choreographed events on that day in 1938 at least recognised that the narrative surrounding Australia Day was incomplete and exclusionary. Also, these protests were not an isolated moment but part of an ongoing resistance: there were further public demonstrations during the Bicentenary events in 1988 – 37 years ago – where over 40,000 Indigenous and non-Indigenous people marched in Sydney in solidarity, condemning the ongoing injustices faced by Aboriginal communities and demanding recognition of their rights. These protests also marked a significant turning point, embedding the idea of “Invasion Day” into the national consciousness and highlighting the need for a more inclusive and honest appraisal of Australia’s chequered history.

Despite the historical flexibility surrounding Australia Day – it has been held in May, June and July – there is now staunch conservative opposition to changing the date. This refusal reflects a broader trend of uncritical nationalism, which, as seen in other countries, is deeply corrosive. Rooted in symbols like the flag and the national anthem, this brand of nationalism thrives on shallow displays of pride, detached from the historical and social complexities of a nation’s identity. Australia Day perpetuates this sanitised version of history that ignores the violence and dispossession upon which modern Australia was built upon.

A symbolic distraction pushed by conservatives

The conservative fixation on Australia Day and their confected outrage over any challenge to its current form reveals a deeper issue – this is not about the date itself or even about national pride: it’s about the authoritarian power to define the nation’s narrative and resist any acknowledgment of its more uncomfortable truths. For decades, January 26 was a relatively innocuous date for most non-Indigenous Australians, associated more with barbecues and beach trips than with historical reflection, primarily because few people seemed to know what the date was actually about. Its transformation into a conservative rallying point is not driven by widespread grassroots sentiment but by a calculated political strategy: to weaponise cultural issues and perpetuate division for electoral advantage.

Dutton thrives on this cycle of outrage. He manufactures a crisis about “woke culture”, then accuses his opponent of stoking division, and relies on a compliant media to amplify the narrative: and true to form, this is exactly what happened this year. The 2023 Voice to Parliament referendum is a prime example of this dynamic: a modest proposal to enshrine an Indigenous advisory body in the Constitution – a small, symbolic and practical step toward reconciliation – was met with an avalanche of racist misinformation and scaremongering. The referendum was not defeated because the idea lacked merit but because conservative leaders and media sowed confusion and fear, preying on ignorance and stoking resentment. Albanese’s well-intentioned efforts, albeit poorly implemented, to advance Reconciliation were reframed as an “elite” agenda, and he continues to face political fallout as a result.

This relentless cycle is not limited to Australia Day or the Voice referendum. It is part of a broader conservative “Trumpist” playbook that seeks to dominate the public debate by focusing on symbolic battles rather than addressing any policy issues. These tactics are effective because they tap into fear – a fear of change; a fear of losing control; a fear of confronting the past; a fear of everything. For leaders such as Dutton, maintaining this fear is crucial, as it allows them to present themselves as defenders of tradition and stability, even as they undermine genuine efforts to build a more inclusive and just society.

Changing the date of Australia Day would be a symbolic gesture but what Australia does need is a transformation in its attitudes toward Indigenous people and its willingness to confront its colonial history. This is a big task, made more difficult by conservative resistance to any form of acknowledgment or accountability. Their rhetoric, steeped in denial and a child-like view of the world, clings to an idealised version of Australia that erases the voices of Indigenous Australians. It’s an ongoing fantasy that prevents the nation from moving forward.

Perhaps it is time to cede Australia Day to the conservatives and allow them to revel in their symbolic victories and expend their energy on the confected outrage and cynical debates that achieve nothing beyond perpetuating division. By stepping away from this performative role-play conflict, progressive leaders and advocates can focus on the more substantial issues that offer real pathways to justice and reconciliation.

A Treaty with Indigenous people, for example, doesn’t depend on a referendum or the approval of the conservative Stasi. If the Liberal Party and the people who can be easily swayed by this mindless agitation continue in this way, it’s best to leave them out of it, and allow those who have the political will, courage and a commitment to progress, to get on with it. Initiatives such as the First Peoples’ Assembly in Victoria and the Noongar Settlement in Western Australia show that meaningful steps can be taken without fanfare or deep polarisation.

The fight over Australia Day is, essentially, a distraction – one that conservatives will never abandon, as it serves their political purposes too well. Progressives must decide whether to remain mired in this conflict or set off on a new strategy, one that bypasses the manufactured outrage and focuses on delivering better outcomes for Indigenous Australians. The road to justice will never be free of obstacles, but it is clear that these obstacles will not be removed by those who benefit from their existence. Maybe it’s time to leave the confected outrage of January 26 behind – it’s never going to end with the Liberal Party in its current form and it’s predictably painful each and every year – and move toward a future that isn’t defined by conservatives but defined by the true work of Reconciliation and progressive transformation.