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‘We’re all part of the story’: The National Australia Day Council touts inclusivity in new ad for 26 January

A new ad for Australia Day has appeared across TV screens, celebrating the diversity of the ‘Australian Story’.

The ad features people from various cultural backgrounds, including several Indigenous Australians, and acknowledges the ‘painful’ and ‘raw’ history of the nation.

The ad comes following years of growing debate over the date of Australia’s national day. 26 January marks the anniversary of the First Fleet’s arrival at Port Jackson in New South Wales in 1788, a date Indigenous Australians mark as Invasion Day, Survival Day or Day of Mourning. The #Changethedate campaign argues that the date of Australia Day should be moved to show respect for the hundreds of years of suffering and inequality experienced by Aboriginal people, which began on 26 January, 1788.

The new advertisement is set to a poem which states the story of Australia Day is the story of every person that resides in the nation. It includes the lines “In parts it is painful, In parts it is raw”, and “It tells of many people, From far and wide, And that have who’ve been here, Since the beginning of time”, spoken by Indigenous Australians.

The ad concludes with the line “We’re all part of the story” and the slogan “Reflect. Respect. Celebrate.”

The ad is attributed to the National Australia Day Council. The council has been contacted by Mumbrella for comment.

The full poem can be read here:

The story of Australia
Is the story of me
It’s the story of you
It’s the story of we

In parts it is painful
In parts it is raw
It others it’s beautiful
Inspiring great awe

It tells of many people
From far and wide
And those who’ve been here
Since the beginning of time

It brings us together
And tears us apart
We all have our views
So where do we start?
By listening to each other
And sharing our part

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