Guardian Australia readers have paid tribute to the Queen as somebody who “gave her life to her job”, but many say her death represents an opportunity for Australia to distance itself from an outdated institution.
For young women in the post-war era, readers said the Queen inspired them as a strong female role model. Sarah Han-de-beaux said the Queen “gave me the impression as a young girl that women can be powerful”.
Many readers had fond memories from Queen Elizabeth II’s 16 visits to Australia. But one reader said despite “the most unstoppable enthusiasm” at being part of the children’s display for the Queen at the Melbourne Cricket Ground upon her first visit in 1954, “this did not lead to a lasting affection.” The process of questioning Australia’s loyalty to the monarchy, imbued in them as children, was a common experience.
Many described respect for the Queen as an individual but thought the institution of the monarchy, embodying the class system and colonisation, was difficult to square with the values of modern society.
Anne-Maree Roche, who has Irish heritage, said: “The Queen represented the robbing and pillaging of many people in the name of colonisation … privilege simply because of birth, reinforcing the British class system.”
Because of these associations, many including John Turner hoped the Queen’s death “will provide an opportunity for Australia to finally shake off the remnants of its colonial past and become a republic with a head of state that embodies the diversity that is Australia rather than the privileged class of a bygone era”.
Many reflected on a generational divide between the reverence older generations, often their parents, felt for the monarchy but which younger generations do not share. Peter Donohue said “my late [Sri Lankan] mother loved all the pomp and pageantry, yet British colonialism ruined her island paradise, like so many others around the world”.
While some readers felt very strongly about the monarchy, others such as Patricia Thompson said: “Frankly Queen Elizabeth [II] and the monarchy are irrelevant to my life.”
One reader said following the Queen’s death, “I saw no signs of anyone paying tributes … A friend said to me, ‘I feel like I should feel something but I feel nothing.’ That sums it up in its entirety.”
Although some praised King Charles III’s interest in the environment, many thought it was inevitable that the end of his mother’s reign would see Australia become a republic. The wish to see greater leadership roles for Indigenous Australians was shared by many readers.
Kerry Tait was among those wanting to see a swift transition to a republic: “Time for us to grow up! We need to get on with becoming our own nation, a republic with Indigenous Australians at the heart of our nation.”
Many expressed that the inability for Australians to vote for their head of state was out of step with democratic principles. Several readers also brought up the Queen’s involvement in the Whitlam dismissal and the revelation of the palace letters as part of why they would like to see Australia sever ties with the monarchy.
However, Peter Ross, who grew up in communist east Germany, said he believes having a British monarch as the head of state is Australia’s “life insurance” against a presidential election “run by too much money … so I am a pragmatic monarchist”.
Many readers, regardless of their opinions about Australia’s future, expressed their sympathy for the Queen’s family as they grieved her death.
