The legacy of colonialism is messy and in trying to make both sense of it and amends for it, the world continues to stumble. It has left us with a postmodern maze that goes ever convoluted as our obsession with identity and the right side of history increases. Is there a way out? Only time will tell, but perhaps we need to ask if we should be looking for an escape in the first place. As the world ushered in the new year while holding its breath, Australia had a small announcement to make.
The country’s prime minister announced a small yet significant change to its national anthem that seeks to promote a more inclusive vision of Australian society. To recognise Australia’s long marginalised indigenous people and the ancient history of its land, the anthem’s second line has been changed from ‘we are young and free’ to ‘we are one and free’. “Changing ‘young and free’ to ‘one and free’ takes nothing away, but I believe it adds much,” wrote Prime Minister Scott Morrison in The Age newspaper. “Australia as a modern nation may be relatively young, but our country’s story is ancient, as are the stories of the many First Nations peoples whose stewardship we rightly acknowledge and respect,” he added.
The move is certainly commendable, in one respect. Such acknowledgment is a small step in according the people trampled upon during the march of colonialism some long overdue respect. That said, the change by itself is merely cosmetic and in practical terms achieves very little. As we strive to overcome inequality, the world, especially the privileged part, needs to rethink and implement a whole lot more. In order to truly overcome colonialism’s legacy, nations that profited from it will also need to broaden their outlook from a purely national one. It will need to revisit and reformulate policies to ensure an end to exploitation, whether it takes place within one country’s borders or across many.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 4th, 2021.
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