Australia Day Comes Alive
By Jane S. Roseen, Tue Jan 10th
When Australia Day comes each January 26th, it brings with it acelebration of all things Australian. This celebration hasgreatly evolved over time, changing both its name and itscontent to reflect modern Australians and their pride in theircountry. Australia Day began as a celebration of the foundation of theAustralian colony. On January 26, 1788, Captain Arthur Phillip(pictured right) took formal possession of the then-Britishcolony and became its first governor. While people throughoutthe colony informally celebrated this date for the next severalyears, it wasn't until 1818 that the celebration was officiallycelebrated as part of the 30th anniversary of the colony'ssettlement by Europeans. By 1838, the 50th anniversary, it became Australia's firstpublic holiday. This commemoration was different in that itencompassed everyone, not just those smaller, private events ofthe past. This early celebration was known as "Foundation Day"and usually included many sporting events. Horse racing wasparticularly popular, as was sailing. In fact, the AnniversaryRegatta (now known as the Australia Day Regatta) in Sydney isthe world's oldest continuous regatta and stems from this earlyathletic bent to Foundation Day.
When Australia's centennial celebration came around in 1888,Australia was a very different country than it had been 100years prior. Gold had been discovered, and Australia was home tonearly three million people. In 1888, all the colonial capitals,except Adelaide, proclaimed "Anniversary Day" a public holidayand each colony celebrated Australia's 100th birthday. The 150th anniversary of European settlement in 1938 brought anissue regarding Anniversary Day into the limelight. Thehighlight of the celebrations in New South Wales was areenactment of Captain Phillip's landing, complete with thedeposition of an Aboriginal tribe. However,
aboriginal people inthe city refused to participate in the reenactment and instead,several hours prior, Aboriginal activists convened a 'Day ofMourning' conference aimed at securing citizenship and equalstatus for Aborigines. This was the first time Aboriginalcomplaints were so prominent on Anniversary Day, but it wouldn'tbe the last. In 1946, the Commonwealth Government, States and Territoriesagreed to observe "Australia Day" under one name and on the sameday. The celebrations continued to have a distinct slant towardsthe European settlers, and consisted largely of reenactments ofthe First Fleet's landing and the events that immediatelyfollowed. Looking to promote a wider celebration of Australia Day, theNational Australia Day Council was formed in 1979, with stateand territory councils and committees soon after. These groupshave worked towards more local and individual involvement inAustralia Day, rather than it just being "another holiday." When1988 brought Australia's bicentennial, it marked two distinctcelebrations. The classic reenactment Sydney Opera House, SydneyAustralia of the First Fleet's voyage was held. However, alongside thecelebrations, 1988 was named a Year of Mourning for Australia'sAboriginal people, who also regarded the year as a celebrationof survival. To many people, Australia Day is still best knownas "Survival Day." Finally, in 1994, it was legislated that all the states andterritories endorsed the celebration of Australia Day on theactual day instead of the closest Monday. Universal AustraliaDay celebrations have been held on January 26th ever since. About the author:Jane S. Roseen is the Owner and President of Harmony Sweets.Harmony Sweets' mission is focused on individual consumerspurchasing gourmet chocolates from around the world for theirfriends and relatives as birthday, anniversary, Christmas,Valentine's Day, and Mother's Day gifts, as well as corporategifting. Website: http://www.harmonysweets.com |
