Advocacy
More than a word – how will your service acknowledge National Reconciliation Week?
Freya Lucas
May 10, 2021
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The 2021 National Reconciliation Week theme, More than a word. Reconciliation takes action, encourages all Australians, including those working in early childhood education and care (ECEC) to consider how they will take “braver and more impactful action” towards a reconciled Australia.
“The Reconciliation movement is at a tipping point,” a spokesperson for Reconciliation Australia said.“In the past year, with Black Lives Matter protests and huge numbers at Invasion Day rallies across the country, we’re seeing people are understanding the truth and speaking up on issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.”
The 2021 theme of National Reconciliation Week, which is held 27 May to 3 June, asks people to take this awareness and knowledge, and use it as a springboard to more substantive, brave action.
“For reconciliation to be effective, it must involve truth-telling, and actively address issues of inequality, systemic racism and instances where the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are ignored, denied or reduced,” the spokesperson noted.
“While we see greater support for reconciliation from the Australian people than ever before, we must be more determined than ever if we are to achieve the goals of the movement — a just, equitable, reconciled Australia.”
Reconciliation can only take place through continued and concerted action from those who are already part of the reconciliation movement to those who are yet to join. A number of actions to support this goal are recommended in the 2021 State of Reconciliation in Australia report.
According to the 2020 Australian Reconciliation Barometer there is far greater awareness of the complexity and magnitude of First Nations cultures and knowledges; and many more Australians now understand the brutal impact that British colonialism and the modern Australian state have had on First Nations families and communities.
“We are seeing more people speaking up, speaking the truth, asking the hard questions, seeing the hard facts, and informing themselves about issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples,” the spokesperson noted.
“The 2021 theme calls on others to follow their lead by reflecting on their own contributions and striving to do more.”
To learn more about National Reconciliation Week, please see here. To register an event, see here, while posters and other resources are available here.
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