Australia Day needs to be debated in our community. It should be done so with respect and leadership. 

Today, January 26, will not solve this issue. Instead, we should focus on why we even need or want to have a day to celebrate Australia.

It wasn’t until 1994 that all states and territories consistently marked January 26 as a public holiday to celebrate Australia Day. However, back in 1935 all the states and territories used the term Australia Day to identify January 26.

Since 1994 we have felt a great need to celebrate this day. Often it’s a fun and relaxed day that is quintessential Australian – the weather is usually kind, festivals are held, barbecues enjoyed and cricket is on the television.  You also get a day off work in the middle of summer. 

If you reflect back on times where you feel you haven’t had a “fair go” or when people are quick to say the actions of someone else are quite possibly “unAustralian”, it’s often because it has clashed with our values of being Australian.

Officially our Australian values are freedom of election and being elected, freedom of assembly and political participation, freedom of speech, rule of law and basic human rights. When people become an Australian citizen, they are reminded that their new citizenship is a “shared identity, a common bond which unites all Australians while respecting their diversity”.

Our identity is something that we also value and was forged following the Anzacs in 1915.  Those values are endurance, courage, mateship, ingenuity and good humour.

It is our values and our identity that we are seeking to celebrate on January 26. It’s our freedom people have died protecting. The pride we have that our home is the lucky country.

Over the coming months and years, if we apply our values to the reason for Australia Day then our country will continue to grow and prosper.