Australia changes a word in its national anthem to honor Indigenous people

Australia has changed a word in its national anthem to reflect what the prime minister called “the spirit of unity” and the country’s indigenous population. Prime Minister Scott Morrison, on New Year’s Eve, announced that the second line of the anthem, Advance Australia Fair, has been changed from “Because we are young and free” to “Because we are one and free”.

The change took effect on Friday.

“It is time to ensure that this great unity is more fully reflected in our national anthem,” Morrison said, adding that Australia was the “most successful multicultural nation on Earth.”

“While Australia, as a modern nation, may be relatively young, the history of our country is ancient, as are the stories of many First Nations peoples whose responsibility we properly recognize and respect,” Morrison said.

“In a spirit of unity, it is right to ensure that our national anthem reflects this truth and shared recognition.”

Australian Indigenous Minister Ken Wyatt said in a statement that he had been asked about the change and had given his support.

Wyatt, the first Australian Indigenous elected to the lower house of the federal parliament, said the one-word change was “small in nature but meaningful”.

“It’s a recognition that the Aboriginal and island cultures of the Torres Strait date back 65,000 years,” he said.

The change comes less than two months after New South Wales Prime Minister Gladys Berejiklian expressed her support for Indigenous Australians, who said the national anthem did not even reflect their history.

University of New South Wales law professor Megan Davis, a Cobble Cobble woman from the Barrungam nation in southeast Queensland, criticized the lack of consultation with Indians on change .

“This is a disappointing way to end 2020 and start 2021. It’s all about us, without us,” he wrote on social media.

Last month, Australia’s national rugby team, the Wallabies, became the first sports team to sing the anthem in an indigenous language before their match against Argentina.

Advance Australia Fair was composed by Peter Dodds McCormick and was first presented in 1878. It was adopted as the national anthem in 1984.