The PR Blog

This morning, I read an essay written by an 12 year old who proudly hails from Canberra. He is an articulate and intelligent young man who loves his adopted country of Australia.  The topic was Federation. I opened the email with eager expectation: what did a young Australian think about the creation of our Nation?

It started well and ended well. It was eloquently argued and, considering that his first language was not English until he arrived here some years ago, I was astounded at what he wrote.

 

 

His opening statement was that " Henry Parkes excellently once said on the 24th of October 1889, ‘’ the opportunity has arisen for the consideration of this great subject  and I believe that the time is at hand… When will this thing be done?’’

 

Federation has made Australia a more understanding country in many ways such as women got the right to vote, file a divorce and also women got paid as much as men in the same working conditions. Federation is the united establishment of smaller entities such as federal governments. This essay will explain how Federation changed Australia for the better.  "

 

So far so good. As an ex teacher of English as a second language, I would have to and do applaud this quote from a young man who has embraced the ideology of our Federation.

 

He went on to say " Federation happened because the Federation conventions persuaded that all six of the colonies would be more powerful if they all had one Prime Minister which controlled everything. Six of the colonies were united to make one country known today as Australia. "

 

 

At this point, I had to stop and ponder.

 

I could not help but think that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

 

I wonder how Mr Parkes would look at this in light of today's collapse of unity and the re emergence of a divided Australia?

 

 

I took a sip of my tea and continued to read.

 

 " Two of the laws were removed from the laws of Australia encyclopaedia which has every single law ever made. Before Federation Aboriginal peoples did not have the right to vote, have a citizenship and also before those two laws were taken away, they were counted as flora and fauna.  Indigenous people were so limited on rights they were not even counted in the human population of Australia. Indigenous people did not have the right to say who they wanted to vote for or how they wanted their own country to educationbe run. It was only 61 years after Federation that Indigenous people could vote which then led to the many ministers being Indigenous like Bill Wentworth and Peter Howson. "

 

I was stunned.

 

I could not believe that this young future father and member of our once great Nation has been taught this utter nonsense. Who teaches this rubbish?

 

It may be referring to a 1967 referendum in which Australians voted overwhelmingly in favor of amending the Australian constitution “to allow the Commonwealth to make laws for Aboriginal people and include them in the census,” per the Parliament of Australia’s website. There is no record of an Australian Flora and Fauna Act existing in federal or state law.

While it is unclear where exactly the Flora and Fauna Act myth originates from, the Western Australian Museum speculates that it may be related to the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Act of 1974.

“This Act gave the NSW government control over Aboriginal heritage and landscape,” reads the museum’s website. “In addition, some states did manage Aboriginal affairs through departments that also looked after flora and fauna.”

Either way, it was and is a complete and utter lie and is perpetuated to this day.

My own grand daughter told me about this some years ago and I said to her " but it isn't true."

She responded " but my University lecturer told me so I believe her Grandma."

I sat back and took a deep breath and understood.

I was only a Grandma. My word, my knowledge means nothing. Apparently, facts are merely inconvenient truths and better discarded in favour of a good story.

On a brighter closing note my young man said :

I think that Federation changed Australia for the better but it did fail to change some things. 

And yes, on this I agree.

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Perhaps my conclusions are different to his, but on this point we can agree.  Federation failed to address the elephant in the room: that both education and health are controlled by the states.

Our Prime Minister is a stooge on the international stage who purports to speak for Australia, but I wonder. Does Australia even exist anymore? Or is it just, like the UNITED States of America, a thing of mythology and about to be relegated into the annals of " I remember when... "

Where the myth of the Flora and Fauna Act is now taught in schools, along with the " Dark Emu reality " of Bruce Pascoe? Who is as much an Indigenous Australian as I am.  So much manipulation and imaginations, our history is becoming the stuff of fairytales.

‘’Did Federation in 1901 make Australia a fair and democratic society’’?

I looked at the question and thought to myself " Does any law make a country more fair or democratic? "

It is not the laws or federation that make a country more or less democratic. It is the people.

We now fear our governments .  We fear our federal and state leaders. We not only fear them, many of us despise them.

As years have passed, we are now tasked with the next wave of the " The Republic issue. "

And it will surely come, as soon our we get the nincompoop Charles on the throne.

People will vote for a Republic, of that I am sure.

Yet who are we tasking with this grave and vitally important task? The non existent Statesmen? The invisible Patriots?

No.

It will be given to elected self serving fools and unelected bureaucrats to write a new constitution for Australia.

Where myth will triumph reality and the indigenous of Australia will actually wish that they were under the protection of a non existent Act of Parliament.

Because, right now, we are all fair game and it is hunting season on us all.

Meanwhile, let us hope and PRAY that our future lies in this young man. But only if he learns the truth.

Because his heart is in the right place but he is being told porkie pies and this has to stop.

Here is the full essay

 

Federation Essay

Henry Parkes excellently once said on the 24th of October 1889, ‘’ the opportunity has arisen for the consideration of this great subject  and I believe that the time is at hand… When will this thing be done?’’ Federation has made Australia a more understanding country in many ways such as women got the right to vote, file a divorce and also women got paid as much as men in the same working conditions. Federation is the united establishment of smaller entities such as federal governments. This essay will explain how Federation changed Australia for the better. 

In this paragraph I will be explaining the rights that women got after federation and how those rights impacted the lives of us today. Some of the rights that women got after Federation were that they could file a divorce, they could not only stand for parliament but also vote and they could also own possessions unlike before 1901 where everything they had the husband owned as his possessions. The Commonwealth franchise enabled women in 1902 to vote and stand for Parliament. This proves that Federation changed the lives of many women by giving them the chance to vote and  to own houses which have changed so many lives in today's world by giving independent women the opportunity to own a successful business and a house. ‘’Did Federation in 1901 make Australia a democratic and fair society’’? I think Federation changed women's lives for the better by giving them opportunities and letting them think for themselves.

Federation happened because the Federation conventions persuaded that all six of the colonies would be more powerful if they all had one Prime Minister which controlled everything. Six of the colonies were united to make one country known today as Australia. In 1889 Henry Parkes gave a speech in tenterfield, New South Wales which then gave Australia the drive it needed which then later led to Federation. This previous statement proves that in Australia it was a popular decision to federate. ‘’ Did Federation in 1901 make Australia a fair and democratic society’’? I think that Federation succeeded to happen because of the natural demand for change such as racial equality, gender equality and just a better life. 

This paragraph will prove that Federation changed the lives of Indeginous peoples for the better.  Two of the laws were removed from the laws of Australia encyclopaedia which has every single law ever made. Before Federation Aboriginal peoples did not have the right to vote, have a citizenship and also before those two laws were taken away, they were counted as flora and fauna.  Indegenous people were so limited on rights they were not even counted in the human population of Australia. Indegenous people did not have the right to say who they wanted to vote for or how they wanted their own country to be run. It was only 61 years after Federation that Indegenous people could vote which then led to the many ministers being Indegenous like Bill Wentworth and Peter Howson. 

Federation has changed many things for the good but it also led to some disasters. This paragraph I will be talking about what Federation failed to do for women and Indegenous people. Federation was in 1901 but Indegenous people only had the right to vote 1962 more than 60 years later!!!! This proves that there are somethings that Federation failed to achieve. Some other issues Federation did not solve are that Aboriginal peoples still sometimes work, live and cook in unhealthy, unsanitary and just plain dirty condition because of their daily income and laws preventing them from doing certain things.’’ Did Federation in 1901 make Australia a fair and democratic society’’? I think that Federation changed Australia for the better but it did fail to change some things. 

‘’Did Federation in 1901 make Australia a fair and democratic society’’? Federation in 1901 did make Australia a ‘’more’’ democratic society but it did fail to accomplish many things such as that Indegenous people only got to vote 61 years later but Federation did give women and Indegenous people opportunities to have a house, be counted in the human population and many more. I think that Federation changed Australia for the better.