Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has weighed in on the annual Australia Day debate… kinda. When asked about recent polling that shows support for changing Australia Day celebration to a day — literally any day! — other than January 26, he acknowledged the hurt the day holds for so many people, but added that it’s a time to gather and celebrate, too.
Addressing the media at the National Press Club on Friday, Albanese was asked about the findings of the poll by The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, which revealed that 61 per cent of Australians want to keep Australia Day on January 26.
That’s a significant jump from 47 per cent just two years ago.
Questioned by ABC journalist Jane Norman if this shift in sentiment could be linked to the failed Voice referendum in 2023, Albanese opted to focus on other aspects of the upcoming weekend.
“Australians will gather at the beach, barbies, they’ll gather around the country and gather at their family backyards, and it’s an opportunity every year as well to think [about] and not take for granted what we are as a nation, what we’ve built here,” he said.
He emphasised it marks a celebration of “why we are the best country on earth”, with the weekend’s Australia Day awards proving to be “an inspiration” every year.
“And the citizenship ceremonies, seeing the joy on [people’s faces] pledging allegiance to our country, is something that lifts me up every year,” Albanese added.
That said, he addressed how the day marks “a focus on the fullness and richness of our history”, which includes the fact that Australians “share this continent with the oldest continuous culture on earth”.
“And what a privilege it is,” he said.
Eventually, he addressed something we’re all probably hoping he would by this point: that January 26 marks a “hurtful, difficult day” for many First Nations people.
“Every year, certainly my local council and the Inner West council [in Sydney], are all very respectful and acknowledging of the full history, that it’s a hurtful, difficult day for many First Nations people,” the prime minister said.
“But it’s one in which we can celebrate what we are today — whether that be our great history going back 65,000 years, or whether it is the arrival of Europeans here, or whether it be the great multicultural nation we’ve built, particularly since the end of the second World War.”
But What Do Young Aussies Think?
So how do young Australians feel about changing the date? A recent poll by right-wing think tank the Institute of Public Affairs claimed support among 18 to 24-year-olds in celebrating Australia Day was growing, up 10 per cent from 2023 to 2024. However, competing — and more robust — research from Deakin University found that young people have remained fairly consistent in their views on the date.
To get to the bottom of it, we asked PEDESTRIAN.TV’s readers how they felt about changing the date.
“It’s not appropriate. Just change it and move on,” wrote one user.
“Change already. No one I know celebrates it,” said another.
One person suggested Australia should “keep the date and change the day”, explaining it can be used “to remember what we did and do better from now on.”
Similarly, another observant respondent pointed out the holiday is still pretty recent, given Australia Day really only became a national public holiday in 1994.
“It’s too new a ‘holiday’ for people to be so upset about changing the date. Shows ignorance and racism,” they stated.
There’s also a consensus that it’s hard to reconcile celebrating Australia Day on January 26 while also acknowledging the country’s history of colonisation. As one person put it, “I’m not First Nations but I support changing the date. I’m sad that support has dwindled.”
Art by Janelle Burger. (Source: supplied)
One user remarked they do want to celebrate being a proud Australian — and it doesn’t have to be on January 26.
A number of young Aussies also shared their thoughts on an alternate date to celebrate Australia Day and there’s one that just kept popping up, mate: May 8.
“Move to May 8th [and] make a public holiday to celebrate. Keep 26th as a day to mourn,” one user said.
Lead image source: National Press Club / Getty Images
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