One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has vowed to ‘turn her back’ on Welcome to Country ceremonies and urged “fed up” Australians to join her.
Firebrand politician Pauline Hanson has called for Australians to push back against Welcome to Country ceremonies conducted by Indigenous people.
The One Nation leader delivered a fiery statement in the Senate on Tuesday afternoon, describing the tradition as “divisive” and something “many people tell me they are just over”.
Her remarks follow ongoing controversy over a Welcome to Country performed before the GWS Giants and Brisbane Lions AFL semi-final clash on Saturday.
Brendan Kerin, a cultural educator from the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council, took to the field at ENGIE Stadium in Sydney and bounty declared the custom, typically conducted before major events and meetings, is “not for white people”.
“A Welcome to Country is not a ceremony we’ve invented to cater for white people,” Mr Kerin said. “It’s a ceremony we’ve been doing for 250,000 years-plus BC. And the BC stands for Before Cook.”
The remarks drew the ire of many who felt it was a departure from the norm and felt more like a lecture that some on social media labelled “a disgrace”.
Senator Hanson agreed and called for the practice to cease.
“If they (Welcome to Country ceremonies) are not to cater to white people, then why are white people constantly subjected to them?” Senator Hanson said in the Senate.
“These welcomes are based on lies that Australia is not our home. So many people tell me they are just over it.”