Zali Steggall hosts first local Voice to Parliament forum
Organisers of the ‘Yes’ campaign in the forthcoming referendum on a Voice to Parliament are urging people to take a stand for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) people.
Hosted by Warringah MP Zali Steggall, speakers at the first public forum on the Voice on the Lower North Shore talked about why the Voice was necessary.
“There’s no doubt that history is calling on all of us,” Ms Steggall said.
Director of the national ‘Yes’ campaign, Dean Parkin, said supporting the referendum was something simple yet powerful that everyone could do.
“Nations don’t get tapped on the shoulder very often,” Mr Parkin said. “This year you get the chance to end 122 years of constitutional silence.
“This isn’t just a project for the (elite). It’s something that lights a fire, kindles in people’s chest. It’s about enriching who we are as a nation.”
Semara Jose, who is co-founder of not-for-profit organisation Deadly Inspiring Youth Doing Good, said the time to act was now. “There is a level of crisis given the increasing number of removals of ATSI young people (from their families),” Ms Jose said. “Young people are falling through the cracks and we need to elevate their cause.”
The current system of dealing with ATSI issues did not allow for the type of response her community needed, Ms Jose said. Responses needed to be holistic and done from a cultural and family perspective.
The Voice would provide a direct ‘collectivisation of our voice’ and the ability to make decisions for ourselves, she said.
Ms Jose urged people to ‘consider it and dream about it’.
“Whichever way you vote, know that it matters.
“You will ultimately decide what affects my life, what affects my children’s life.”
The referendum question will ask voters if they agree to alter the Constitution ‘to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice’.
While a date is yet to be set, the referendum is likely to be held in October this year, and is compulsory for all eligible voters.