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#Australians PLEASE VOTE YES
luthienebonyx · 8 months
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I've seen some misinformation spreading around tumblr about the Australian Voice referendum to be held this Saturday, 14 October 2023, so here are some actual facts about what it is and why Australians should PLEASE vote YES.
So, what is the referendum question?
The referendum question is about recognising Indigenous Australians in the Constitution, and setting up a body to be known as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, so that Indigenous representatives have the right to provide advice to government about decisions that affect Indigenous people.
Here’s the actual referendum question:
A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice. Do you approve this proposed alteration?
The new chapter and section to be added to the constitution are:
Chapter IX Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
S 129 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice
In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia:
1. There shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice;
2. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice may make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples;
3. The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws with respect to matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures.
Source and more info
That’s it. That’s all it is.
The No campaign is spreading lies about the Voice, suggesting that it will somehow take rights or property away from non-Indigenous Australians. They’ve also been using social media - and some elements of mainstream media - to stir up fear and racism, using tactics with a vibe that will be all too familiar to our American friends who have lived through Trump, or our British friends who have been through Brexit.
Here are a few simple facts to counter some of the misinformation that's out there.
Why do we need a body like the Voice?
Indigenous people experience a level of disadvantage that applies to no other group of Australians. As the Prime Minister has said on numerous occasions, a young Indigenous man in this country today is more likely to go to jail than to go to university. Meanwhile, the periodic closing the gap reports show that Australian governments continue to fail in their aim for Indigenous Australians’ health and life expectancy to be equal to that of other Australians.
These sorts of outcomes are typical of a system that has always been about doing things to Indigenous people, rather than with them. Indigenous people need to be in the room when decisions are made about matters that affect them.
So yeah, we need an advisory body that has the ear of politicians. Seems simple enough, so why not just legislate it?
That’s the thing: we’ve already tried that.
We need an advisory body like the Voice to be enshrined in the Constitution because we’ve HAD advisory bodies before – bodies like the former Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC). ATSIC was abolished in 2005 by a government that was hostile to ATSIC’s aims – something that government could easily do since there was no obligation for a body like that to exist. Other similar bodies have gone the same way. 
Putting the Voice in the constitution means that it will always exist. The actual decision-making power continues to reside with our elected politicians, but having the Voice means that they will be obligated to listen to the perspective and suggestions of Indigenous representatives before they (the politicians) make decisions affecting Indigenous people.
The politicians will still have the power to legislate the details of how the Voice works, just like any other body set up under legislation - but once it's in the constitution, they don't get to decide whether it exists or not.
Where did the idea for the Voice come from?
Indigenous people have been calling for something like the Voice since the 1920s, but the current proposition originated in the Uluru Statement from the Heart. This is a petition created by Indigenous delegates to the First Nations National Constitutional Convention held at Uluru in 2017. The Uluru statement from the heart is only 439 words, but they’re very powerful words. Read it here
So if you hear the No campaign trying to say that the idea for the Voice comes from Canberra or from politicians: no, it doesn’t. It comes from Uluru, in central Australia, and it comes from a request by representatives of a large number of Indigenous people. The government is responding to that request by holding this referendum.
Do all Indigenous Australians support the Voice?
Have you ever known any group of people that share 100% support for anything? Of course there isn’t agreement by every single Indigenous person that this is the right way to proceed. HOWEVER, that said, polling shows that around 80% of Indigenous Australians  support the Voice, and of the remaining approximately 20%, many don’t support the Voice because they believe it doesn’t go far enough. Some want a treaty before anything else.
But you wouldn’t know that by the way the Australian media has reported the campaign.
I’m not going to repeat that No campaign slogan. If you’ve watched or read any reporting about this issue, you know the one I mean. The one that panders to ignorance and fear.
Instead, I’m just going to say: if you don’t know, FIND OUT. And then VOTE YES.
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claraameliapond · 8 months
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PSA : THE INDIGENOUS VOICE REFERENDUM 14th October 2023
The Yes Vote is literally just giving indigenous Australians A SEAT AT THE TABLE to give information and advice about issues and governmental decisions that affect them.
Indigenous information and advice for indigenous issues from indigenous Australians.
That's it . It's acknowledging their existence as the first peoples of Australia and recognising that they have valuable information to contribute about their cultures, the ways they live, what their most pressing needs are and the best ways in which to help, to enable governments to effectively help them.
The government already provides "help" each year, in an effort to close the gap on education access, healthcare access, and many other pressing needs - they are already using taxpayer money to do this but crucially, these efforts have not been successful because we are missing out on crucial information.
The Voice to Parliament gives the government access to invaluable information that enables it to create and better implement aid, education, healthcare , equal opportunity.
I have been very actively involved in many Reconciliaton efforts for the vast majority of my life -
At 16 I travelled to some of the indigenous rural communities in Australia, met elders and individuals no tourist has access to meet, learnt from them, and saw what was there.
I saw the attempts, the efforts to provide access to Western education, that the rest of the country has, to provide healthcare, housing etc.
They don't work
They are based on western ways of life, ideas of community and interaction.
It's not the same.
They don't work.
Fundamentally because even if well intentioned, your efforts to help can actually harm if you don't have access to crucial information about how indigenous communities live.
We need to accommodate our help, our efforts, our aid to the specific needs and ways of life, values and dynamics of the many indigenous communities, especially rural, that exist across Australia, so that they have access to the same human rights we all do.
The human right to healthcare and education that we all have- it's not accessible in the same ways for indigenous communities.
It's provided, but on western terms- with the western expectation that children will leave their families for 6 months at a time and travel extremely far away to attend school, for example.
This is so backwards and outdated even for western sensibilities, and an incredibly outdated mode of education that is unhealthy emotionally for any child, let alone vulnerable people who have to choose between a western run school and their culture, their families - literally being a part of their community, a present member.
There are better ways to provide access to education than this. Ways that don't disrupt their connection to community, land and culture.
And the best people to ask, to provide information that can properly inform us about these issues, and how best to navigate them, fix them, are the the indigenous Australians themselves- they are the experts.
So that our aid and help and efforts actually do - help. Actually work.
The funds are going there anyway. So we need to put it to use in effective ways.
What we have now doesn't work.
We can only make it better.
Please Vote YES for The Indigenous Voice to Parliament
It is the beginning of lasting, effective positive change for vulnerable communities, and for us all.
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bettygemma · 8 months
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You're the Voice
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Get behind it fam!
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haveyouheardthisband · 3 months
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obscure bands and where to listen to them, part 2
Follow-up to [this post].
Here I'll go over five artists whose polls got an extremely low amount of "yes" votes, plug where you can listen to them, etc.
If you're a fan of one of these artists and I got anything wrong or you have anything to add, please send an ask!
Long post ahead.
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PALMSY
Genres: Indie Pop, Jangle Pop, Bedroom Pop 10 out of 2,375 voters have listened to them. (0.4%)
Self-described as such: "Bedroom songs from the Netherlands. Feel-good sunny energy, jangly indie pop and the breezy energy of pop-punk." Their website (in Dutch) says they're influenced by artists such as Bombay Bicycle Club, Darwin Deez, Little Comets, and The Wombats. Released one EP in 2017 and seems to have been inactive since, but two members went on to form the band Banji.
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Apple Music Soundcloud Spotify YouTube (official) YouTube (auto-generated)
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Clay J Gladstone
Genres: Pop Punk, Punk Rock 12 out of 2,495 voters have listened to them. (0.5%)
Australian. "Emo punk outfit Clay J Gladstone was formed in 2020, comprised of current and former members of powerhouses Resist the Thought, Caulfield, and Buried in Verona." Released one album and some singles in 2021-2022, but they're still active and playing shows! Apparently one of their guitarists got his equipment stolen recently but they were able to fundraise enough money to replace it so yay :)
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Apple Music Bandcamp Soundcloud Spotify YouTube (official) YouTube (auto-generated)
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Radiation 4
Genres: Avant-Garde Metal, Mathcore 10 out of 2,314 voters have listened to them. (0.4%)
Los Angeles-based experimental metal band that dressed in lab coats and glasses for their live performances. Their MySpace listed their influences as "Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Tom Waits, Mr Bungle, Botch..the list goes on." (IMO, the vocals especially are VERY Mike Patton-ish.) Released an EP in 2001 and an album in 2003, then went on hiatus in 2007 (though the vocalist uploaded some of their stuff to Bandcamp in 2022-2023?) Here's a fairly recent interview with the vocalist.
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Bandcamp Here are unofficial YouTube uploads of Radiation 4 (2001 EP) and Wonderland (2003 album), which aren't on the Bandcamp, or anywhere else that I can find. ...Also, I finally found a copy of the album art for Wonderland that isn't JPEG'd into oblivion.
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LightGuides
Genres: Pop Rock, Indie Rock, Math Rock 4 out of 2,158 voters have listened to them. (0.2%)
Self-proclaimed "Glaswegian pop-punk samba legends" (they aren't really samba though...) previously known as We Hung Your Leader. According to their old website, their influences included Jimmy Eat World, Alexisonfire, Brand New, and The Get Up Kids. Released two "mini-albums" between 2010 and 2011, and ceased posting on social media around 2017. Here's an interview (from shortly before the release of their second album) if you want to know more!
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Apple Music Soundcloud Spotify YouTube (official) YouTube (auto-generated)
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Tribraco
Genres: Jazz-Rock, Avant-Prog, Progressive Rock 12 out of 2,534 voters have listened to them. (0.5%)
Italian instrumental jazz-rock band, formed in Rome in 2004 initially as a trio but then grew to a quartet. Their MySpace listed such influences as John Zorn, Frank Zappa, Igor Stravinsky, and Fred Frith. Released two albums, one in 2008 and one in 2010. (...there's not much else I could find about them!)
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Apple Music Spotify YouTube (official) YouTube (auto-generated)
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Aussie Update
Hello dear friends,
For those of you who don't know, Australia had a historic referendum today for "The Voice to Parliament." This referendum was needed to change the Australian constitution so that an advisory body could give the federal government their opinion on matters affecting Indigenous Australians.
For the voice to pass, we need 51% of the country and 4 out of six states, and it's important to know that most referendums fail. The counting started at 6:00PM in every state, with one to go due to daylight savings. However, it has already failed.
This is not the outcome I wanted, but it is the outcome I expected. This referendum failure points to what POC have always known, we have a problem with racism in this country. We also have a huge problem with apathy and ignorance, the main slogan of the no side was "If you don't know, vote no," and people didn't take the time to educate themselves. I had many conversations with people who had no idea about The Voice or what it meant and all their fears were unfounded because of the missinfo campaign.
This didn't happen in a vacuum, the cost of living is insane, rent is unaffordable, and investors are buying up all our houses. This horrible outcome is just another log in a pile that disproportionately affects Indigenous Australians.
All we can do now is acknowledge the hard work and efforts of the Yes campaigners and thank them for what they did for the country. Hug your friends, give some a call if you think they're having a hard time.
13yarn 13 92 76 the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander crisis support line.
13 11 14 lifeline.
These services may be very busy right now but there are people who are there for you. If someone is at immediate risk, please call 000.
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Additional comment from the submitter: ❝If you have an opinion, please comment. I heard some people describe their ethnicity as Australian in this way and it confused me because I've never seen it that way myself.❞
This poll was submitted to us and we simply posted it so people could vote and discuss their opinions on the matter. If you’d like for us to ask the internet a question for you, feel free to drop the poll of your choice in our inbox and we’ll post them anonymously (for more info, please check our pinned post).
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thatcryptidinthewoods · 9 months
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IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT
Australia is having a referendum in October in order to rewrite the constitution to permanently legalise an indigenous-only group that will advise the government on laws, especially those regarding the indigenous people. The group members will be elected by the indigenous community only.
This will be our first serious step towards making good on our past apologies, and working towards repairing the damage we did when we arrived in the 1700s and since then.
A referendum only ever happens once every 30 years, if not more, so it is very important that we can get it to pass NOW. If you are Australian, or on the Australian electoral role, please VOTE YES!
If you're not Australian, it would be greatly appreciated if you could pass the message on to any other Australians you know!
If you want more information, here is a link to the AEC's referendum website and here is a link to an faq video.
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hypnotisedfireflies · 4 months
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Readers, pls halp
So um as I hit 'save' on chapter 11 of Interstellar Overdrive this afternoon, it occurred to me that I've only posted up to chapter 4 on AO3, because I said I'd only post it weekly so I could "write other things and slow down."
Plot twist:
I haven't been writing other things and I haven't slowed down much, I'm just not uploading. >>
So I'm actually pretty shit at working across multiple stories!
So I haven't been working on other things (*cough*SQ sequel*cough*Boston-era fic*cough*). And I kind of keep fiddling with chapters until I post them, which means I'm not emptying out my brain to do other things. So in my garbled mind that means I'm technically working on every chapter I haven't posted until I do, which means my stupid brain is currently seven chapters full.
I'm saying it's getting a bit crowded in here.
So my question is:
Please feel free to add any thoughts re this in the comments too, idk, help. Basically I like sticking to a schedule once I've committed to it but idk if this is working.
I guess I'd post something like ... Australian Tuesdays and Saturdays?
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lukiverse · 8 months
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(Australians please read this) The Indigenous Voice to Parliament
Okay, so the basic idea of the Voice to parliament is adding a section to the Constitution (the laws that can't be changed except with a referendum) so that there is an Indigenous Advisory Board. This is something that First Nations people want and need, and the idea originated in the Uluru Statement From the Heart (https://ulurustatement.org/the-statement/view-the-statement/ it's less than a page long). 
These sorts of advisory boards aren't weird. Australia has over 110 of them for things like blood borne viruses and STIs, each containing qualified experts. Previously several attempts have been made to start Indigenous Advisory Boards but they've all been disbanded by successive governments. This is why we need to change the constitution. No matter who is in power, there will always be a group of elected Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people to give advice pertaining to their needs. (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-10-04/how-different-would-the-voice-be-from-other-advisory-bodies/102880116)
One of the no side's main arguments is that there aren't any details about the Voice. This is actually a good thing. The power to decide how it works will be in the hands of the parliament, meaning our democratically elected representatives can vote on how the Voice works. The Voice also will not have veto power, not will it add unnecessary and costly beaurocratic delays to government processes. It will simply give advice and make recommendations pertaining to First Nations issues. 
The Government doesn't even have to listen to the Voice, although public records will be made of who agrees and disagrees with them. The public then has the power to cast scrutiny on whoever they think is in the wrong (which will probably be the politicians). 
Reconciliation Australia's polls have found that 86% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people believe the Voice is important. (https://www.reconciliation.org.au/reconciliation/support-a-voice-to-parliament/)
Right now Indigenous Australians aren't in a great place. They are the most incarcerated race in the entire world compared to their total population (https://theconversation.com/factcheck-are-first-australians-the-most-imprisoned-people-on-earth-78528). Aboriginal males have a 40% higher suicide rate than non-Aboriginal males. Right now our government is failing to address these concerns, and they've been failing for the past 50 years. A permanent advisory board composed of Indigenous leaders elected by Indigenous Australians can best represent their interest and will ultimately save lives. 
On a final note, this affair has seen a huge amount of misinformation and conspiracy theories, with wild claims that Indigenous Australians want us to pay rent or bypass our democracy. These claims are wildly untrue. (https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/oct/12/indigenous-voice-to-parliament-referendum-misinformation-fact-checked). Also note that in Australia it's legal to lie in political advertisements and campaigns (https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/why-is-it-legal-to-tell-lies-during-the-voice-referendum-campaign/2wxd2gfec), so take any extremist, fear-mongering claims with a grain of salt. No side campaigners also claim that "if you don't know, vote no". This is absurd. If you truly want to excercise the power of democracy that you (or your parents) are extremely lucky to have, then please do your research and come to an informed conclusion. 
Further reading - 
Every Australian household has received a booklet containing information about the Yes side and the No side. I would recommend reading The Guardian's annotated versions of these, where they elaborate on certain points and call out incorrect or disputed claims. 
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/ng-interactive/2023/jul/20/the-vote-yes-pamphlet-referendum-voice-to-parliament-voting-essay-aec-published-read-in-full-annotated-fact-checked
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/ng-interactive/2023/jul/20/the-vote-no-pamphlet-referendum-voice-to-parliament-voting-essay-aec-published-read-in-full-annotated-fact-checked
The Guardian and their independent journalism are honestly a tremendous resource, providing free and accurate information about the latest developments and clearly explaining everything for those who haven't kept up. 
I also urge everyone to read the Uluru Statement From the Heart, which Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has committed to in full. 
Thanks for reading, hopefully I've helped clarify what the referendum is about, and maybe helped you make your decision. 🖤💛❤️
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cutebutalsostabby · 7 months
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Voice Referendum P2
Some very weird anon just sent me a very weird anonymous essay about my post on the Voice referendum (link). I'm not going to give the essay itself any airtime, but I am happy to share some extra info for education purposes.
Terminology
The term "settler" refers to anyone non-Indigenous, regardless of ethnic background. Sometimes it is useful to be more specific, e.g. white, Asian, African and so on, but the Voice was a proposal created for the sake of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (aka Indigenous, First Nations or Blak), therefore settler is a useful term to describe the non-Indigenous population - who were, unfortunately, invited to have an opinion on this matter.
The above is not to say that whiteness is totally irrelevant here: while I couldn't find any data on how different racial demographics voted, the survey conducted by Octopus Group and Accent Research (link) shows a telling correlation between those that voted No in the referendum and those that believed (falsely) that white people face more discrimination than Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
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I also note ABC's analysis (link) that those living in inner city locations were more likely to vote yes than those in rural areas. There are a few ways you could interpret that; one of them is that inner city areas tend to be more multicultural.
Do White People Experience More Discrimination than Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People?
No.
Given the above graph, it's not hard to interpret how the anon that messaged me about "shitting on white people" voted, but it's really not hard to fact check this claim: even beyond the catastrophic breaches of human rights during the original invasion of so-called Australia - from murder to disease to destruction of land and property to forced evacuation to the death of several Indigenous languages - the effects of genocide continue today. Indigenous people are about 15 times more likely to be in prison and have a roughly 10-year lower life-expectancy than non-Indigenous people (source). Even before the Voice "debate" arrived, The Guardian reported that discrimination against Indigenous Australians had risen rapidly in 2021 (link). It only really takes a few minutes of independent research for any claims that the Voice would provide "special privilege" to fall apart.
I'm Queer and Have Racial Opinions, Hear Me Roar
Queer settlers are still settlers. Queer white people are still white. Specifically in regards to this part of the message I received:
im a queer woman in a relationship that is not heteronormative and i agree with almost everything the left wing says. i just think
I don't think this lovely lady did think so I'mma cut her off right there. Thanks for your very exciting opinion :) please dispose of it responsibly.
...So Now What?
Well, the vote has already happened, and unfortunately it was a No. Honestly, I'm a bit confused about receiving this ask now? Ah well.
As I said in my last post, I don't think settlers should have been voting on this in the first place, but since we were, I believe it was our duty to vote Yes. All past opinion polls showed that as the majority Indigenous opinion. I do respect that some Indigenous people voted No themselves, whether due to Jacinta Price's perspective on the "Voice of Division" or Lidia Thorpe's as representative for the Blak Sovereign Movement. Indigenous people are not a monolith, nor should they be expected to behave that way. In the case of settlers voting No however: I don't believe there is a good excuse for this. I think it was a racist result. I'm not overly surprised, but I am disappointed. Even so, the Voice was never going to be the end of it.
A few years ago, I made a commitment that at least 1% of my income would go towards paying the rent to Indigenous people (further info here). I've kept this commitment and would encourage others with an income to do the same. I've also written to my local MP to remind him of the unactioned recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody as well as the Bringing them Home Report.
I'd really encourage all settlers, in Australia or elsewhere, to find some way to get involved. Let's make use of our privilege and make the world a better and more equal place for all.
Thanks for reading.
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ru-inn · 7 months
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I’m not sure how much reach this will have but any Australians that see this please vote YES for today’s referendum.
The other campaign has muddied the waters so much and it’s understandable that it’s confusing but this vote is important. It’s a step in the right direction to finally allow Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians a say in their own future instead of others offering “solutions” which in most cases are utterly patronising. Imagine your rights being dictated by outside forces where your own voice in matters is ignored.
So vote YES.
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blue-bec · 8 months
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If you are able to vote in the Australian Referendum on The Voice to Parliament, I strongly recommend you vote yes.
If you don't know what it is, please watch this video by the ever awesome Briggs.
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tehriel · 8 months
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Side note, Australians please vote yes. I can't believe how hard the No campaign is going.
I don't know how someone can validate voting no and then go to bed without thinking themselves a massive fucking racist shitbag.
I know Murdoch owns all of our media but it's every tv channel.
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dawningfairytale · 8 months
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as a reminder for australians, the voice for parliament referendum is this saturday the 14th of october 2023. please vote yes. while this is not the only step in reparations for indigenous australians, while it is not itself a complete apology, it is a step in the right direction. justice for the indigenous communities that have been harmed in truly terrible ways for the past centuries can only begin to be achieved with a yes majority in each state. this is not an absolute fix, but it’ll help a hell of a lot more than a no vote.
if you are in the 18-20 age range, and you haven’t registered to vote yet, do it now. your vote matters.
my knowledge is limited. listen to australians who are indigenous. listen to them when they speak. if you don’t know, find out.
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pertinax--loculos · 8 months
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Every time I see that incorrect fucking post about the Voice to Parliament floating around it makes me FUCKING LIVID. Like I wanna wade in cuz it's PLAIN FUCKING WRONG but the sentiment is correct so I stop myself.
So yeah, VOTE YES but for fuck's sake PLEASE understand what you're fucking voting for. There is no reason Indigenous Australians shouldn't be allowed in Parliament which is why THEY ARE CURRENTLY ALLOWED IN PARLIAMENT. There's also no reason not to have a Constitutionally entrenched Indigenous led advisory body WHICH IS WHAT THE FUCKING REFERENDUM IS ABOUT, jesus christ.
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mishalogic · 8 months
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If the "YES" VOICE!
Win the Australian referendum 2023
A "MOB" of racists will get high paying jobs
at the expense of the Australian taxpayer!
THEY WILL ACHIEVE NOTHING!!!
Please keep those RACISTS out of our parliament!
VOTE NO!!! ... Misha
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