Quote of the month!
December 2006
Not our tribe
The shockwaves from the Cronulla riots in Sydney a year ago were felt throughout the year. Letter writers still mention it. It is clear that the Union Jack is divisive and exclusionary, so you can only assume that supporters of the current flag actually want things to be that way.
"Lately, I have noticed youth in the (Sutherland) shire are tattooing the postcode on their bodies as a kind of tribal identification. In a similar way, the blue ensign is displayed on cars and from apartment balconies as a continuing expression of the chant from the Cronulla riots: "F--- off, Lebs." I want to ask these young men whether they consider themselves an ornament to the flag or the flag as an ornament to them."
Allen Northwood, Engadine NSW
Letters to the Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald, 30 May 2006.
November 2006
Separation of Church and State. Not.
Max Wallace, author of the yet to be published "The Purple Economy: the supernatural, tax and culture", writes:
"The fact we are a soft theocracy is most evident symbolically: three Christian crosses, St George, St Andrew and St Patrick feature in the Union Jack in the corner of our flag flying atop our Parliaments; parliamentary sessions open with prayers where members pray for the kingdom of the Christian heaven to be established on earth "thy kingdom come" thereby ending representative democracy; the divinely ordained Queen's face on our currency symbolises the unity of church and state in Australia.
The effect of all this is to tell Australians whose personal heritage is not British or Irish exactly where they stand: on the outer. These others can join the club but they must not rock the theocratic constitutional boat."
October 2006
Double Standards
"It was good to read that the RSL had adopted a mature attitude to the apology from the youth who burnt their flag in Brighton-le-Sands. I hope the magistrate would have adjudicated similar punishment if any of the "Aussie" youths shouting racist abuse while draped in the Australian flag had appeared before her."
R. McKenna, Elizabeth Bay NSW
Letters to the Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 October 2006.
September 2006
Mixed Messages
"The Prime Minister says that it's OK for servicemen to make offensive videos to "let off a bit of steam" when working in stressful environments. Well, I can't wait until young Muslim men take photos of themselves holding a baseball bat to the head of a person who is dressed in zinc cream with the Aussie flag draped around their neck, because apparently it could be a good way for them to "let off a bit of steam". Good on you, Prime Minister, for showing us yet another great Australian value."
Chris Bonney, Elizabeth Bay NSW
Letters to the Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald, 19 September 2006.
August 2006
Dr Elizabeth Kwan has just released a new book on the Australian flag called Flag and Nation . In the introduction, Dr Kwan says:
"The debate about the Australian flag is as much about the place of the Union Jack on it as about a new design. But further, it is a debate about whether being British is the determining factor in being Australian. A nation's flag is its chief symbol, typifying or representing both people and country. Australia's national flag not only includes the flag of another country, but gives it the place of honour."
July 2006
Don't confuse the neighbours
It is now clear that the current Government, while professing eternal and undying love of our Union Jack flag, is happy to dump it when it becomes an international embarassment. Recently Australia and China signed a free trade agreement. When it comes to dealing with China, Australia wants to make it quite clear we aren't British - hence the logo below.
June 2006
Our real history...
"We're a lucky bunch living in a great country, but the Australian flag and national anthem leave me hollow because there isn't one thing in either that represents indigenous Australians."
S. Kenrick, Doonan, Qld
Letters to the Editor, The Australian, 23 May 2006.
May 2006
False Patriotism
"ANZAC Day used to have a quiet dignity about it, but has recently become a bellicose and jingoistic celebration as ignorant flag-draping yobs clutter the shores of Gallipoli, loudly declaring their pride in being "Strayian". And the parades around the country seem increasingly to be peopled by young squirts who sob and howl their pride in what? Most of them will never study history in any sustained way in schools and many, it seems, will rarely read a book in their lives.
The myth-making and celebration of false patriotism does little to honour the suffering and contribution of those who fought in Australia's wars."
Carmel Boyle, Carnegie, Vic
Letters to the Editor, The Age, 25 April 2006.
April 2006
The debate lives on
Some great letters from Australia Day have come to our attention and show that despite the wishful thinking of our opponents, the mood to chage the flag is as strong as ever.
"On Australia Day, as many Australians attend official ceremonies and witness the unfurling and flying of our national flag, it should be a reminder that while our national flag needs to be honoured and respected, its symbolism based on the Union Jack is out of kilter with what Australia is today and its aspirations for the future.
I support our British heritage being recognised in an appropriate way on a revised national flag, along with the Southern Cross, our Aboriginal ancestors, our multiculturalism and the inclusion of some uniquely Australian icons."
Peter J. Maskell, Carrum Downs, Vic
"Aussies have nothing to "rejoice" about on January 26, nor are we (as the song goes) "young and free". For 105 years Australia has endured a foreigner as its head of state and a national flag polluted by the Union Jack. I will celebrate Australia Day when we become the Federal Republic of Australia and have a flag that truly represents the people of this great country."
Gary S. Tomkinson, Bridgetown, WA
Letters to the Editor, The Age, 26 January 2006.
March 2006
Flagging an idea
"As some people don't wish to change the Australian flag, maybe we could persuade New Zealand to change its flag to stop confusion between the two."
Halcyon Evans, Chatswood
Letters to the Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald, 6 February 2006.
February 2006
Flag Burning and Freedom of Speech
Last month, Hadi Khawaja was sentenced to three months jail for burning the current Australian flag. Most Australians saw this as being heavy-handed hyprocrisy on the part of the government
"White supremacists draped themselves in the Australian flag and sent text messages inviting all to come and support "Leb bashing day". These people used the flag to justify hatred and discrimination against non-white Australians. Hadi Khawaja burnt the flag in this context - he should not be jailed for three months. Those who placed racist connotations on the flag should be held equally, if not more, responsible than Khawaja for last month's shameful events."
Samantha Chung Randwick
"A pack of neo-Nazis go on a rampage under the banner of the Australian flag and in protest someone burns it. The penalty? Three months' jail. What sort of country has Australia become? I deeply resent people such as Pauline Hanson and John Howard draping themselves in the flag to peddle their jingoistic racist views, but nothing happens to them. The way Australia is at the moment, the flag deserves to be burnt."
Ian Semmel Maleny (Qld)
Letters to the Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald, 14 January 2005.
January 2006
Wrapping white racism in the flag
The riots in Cronulla, Sydney, last December saw racists, neo-Nazis and white supremicists wrap themselves proudly in our Union Jack-laden national flag. The public swamped newspapers with letters that pointed out how divisive our flag has become, and how it is now forever tainted with racism.
"In the aftermath of the battle of Cronulla, is it time to have another look at changing our national flag? The de facto symbol used by the "yobbos" was the current Australian flag. One has to admit it is a pretty Anglo symbol. Does it really represent Australia anymore? It certainly does not represent anything pre-1788 and does it really represent anything post-1950s? And no, the Anzacs didn't fight under it. They fought under either the Union Jack or the Red Ensign (the current Blue Ensign only became the civil, or "people's" flag in the 1950s). Visit the World War I exhibit at the National War Memorial in Canberra for verification of this."
Greg Cavanagh, Lavington
Letters to the Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald, 15 December 2005.
"After three years of procrastination, I got my flagpole up on Saturday and the flag flying Sunday. I took it down on Monday."
P.E. Power, Sydney
Letters to the Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald, 17 December 2005.
"The Premier, Morris Iemma, says the Australian flag is a "symbol of national unity". The Union Jack symbolises that the nation is Anglo-Saxon. Other ethnic backgrounds are excluded. How is that unifying? Anyhow, who wants a foreign symbol superimposed on our national flag?"
Sid McLaren, Randwick
Letters to the Editor, The Sydney Morning Herald, 4 January 2006.
"The Australian flag is not a unifying symbol any more and should be replaced. As for the front-lawn flag flyers, you can be pretty certain that a scoundrel resides in the brick-veneer behind."
Mac Nicolson, Mullumbimby
Letters to the Editor, The Australian, 6 January 2006.
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