David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

The upcoming referendum has been a great opportunity to engage with Canberrans and those further afield. I've been to Orange and Braidwood, and had great conversations about what the proposed changes at the referendum mean for us as a country. I've never been involved in a referendum before. I really respect and enjoy the work of Dr James Hollis, and one of the things he talks about is fear. One line from him is:

It's one thing to have fear, something else to have a fear-driven life.

I know personally that fear is a part of life. To the young people up there in the gallery: you go through life and you have many fears. It's part of the human condition. Where we run into trouble is when we make decisions based on fears. That leads to a smaller life, not a larger life. It's not stepping into life.

I've been really concerned about the 'no' campaign's deliberate use of fear. Today, Paul Sakaal in the SMH confirmed that there is a deliberate tactic of using fear. I would urge my fellow senators here to consider what it means for a country to make a decision based on fear. What does that mean for our future? Are we stepping into a larger story, a possibility for the future, or are we diminishing ourselves and our story, narrowing what we are willing to contemplate as a nation? Yes, there will be fears, but I believe we can be generous and accept the request from Australia's First Nations people.