Before I get into this let me start by saying that I am not in any way racist, nor do I judge anyone by their religion, gender, age, sexuality, political persuasion, or personal beliefs of any kind. I believe there is good and bad in all races and religions.
There has been a lot of advertising on Australian television in recent months about recognising the Australian Aborigines in the Australian constitution, I must be naive as to me this was a given, I thought they already were. I believe that if you were born in Australia, or you have become an Australian citizen, that you are then entitled to any and all privileges or otherwise of being an Australian, no less, and certainly no more. What I do not believe in is apologising for things that have happened historically, things that I was not, or my generation was not, involved in.
Another thing that I object to most strongly, and I witnessed this first hand some years ago, I will not pay anyone for the privilege of being at one with nature, the way we should all be entitled. As an example some years ago Brian and I drove to Perth and on the way we thought we would do some whale watching, as we drove towards the observation site we found that we had to pay a fee to the local aboriginal people, in fact there was a manned shed of sorts blocking our way, we turned around and drove off.
I am not mocking Aboriginal culture or their heritage in any way here, but I do not believe that any culture should profit in this way. I am happy to pay anyone for their services, for the goods they make, for the things they have grown, , I would gladly pay to see a cultural event, but I will not pay for the sake of paying. The Aboriginal people of Australia should look to the Maori people of New Zealand, they are a shining example of a people who are proud of their heritage, and the positive way in which they celebrate their culture and share it with others is inspirational.
Filed under: My view of the world Tagged: Aboriginal, Graham Mitchell, Life, Maori Image may be NSFW.
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