Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Of course, we don't all have to agree. It's my view that we should be able to have a discussion about this, because I think it's undermining.

I want to tell a very short story. My son is 15 years of age. When he was about seven years of age, we were in Brisbane together. We were over there for holidays, and I took him along to a NAIDOC event at Musgrave Park. As we were walking towards the park—from the centre of town it's probably a good 20- or 25-minute walk—my son said to me, 'Dad, I wish I was Aboriginal.' I said to him: 'Why is that, mate? Why do you say that?' He said: 'How cool would it be to have been here for that long—the very first Australians!' I thought of that saying, 'Out of the mouth of babes.' Here is a young boy, who I've tried to raise to respect our culture and to respect the history of this nation. Without me putting that in his head, he has acknowledged the significance of the role that Aboriginal people have played in the history of this country. I said to him: 'Son, that is your history, too. You are Australian. You should be proud, as you are, of the aspects of the culture of this nation.'

I think it is right that we have a debate about these sorts of things. It's important that we don't create an environment in this country where some Australians are deriding the importance of acknowledging our long culture and history, which Indigenous people have and bring into this place. This is something that we can all share in, that we can all play a part in. As I said, I think there is an overuse of the acknowledgements. When you go into a videoconference, you've got seven or eight people from around the country and each of them feels like they have to do the acknowledgement of the place where they are. It takes a big part out of the meeting. That was the point that Noel Pearson was making only a few weeks ago, when he was talking about the fact that it can interrupt. We should be able to recognise the significance of Aboriginal people and their history and the role their ancestors have played in caring for this country, but we shouldn't do it in a way that derides it.