Yes Voice advocate Teela Reid attacks Australia and pushes for Australia Day to be abolished

Senior Yes campaigner labels Australia a ‘nation without a soul’ and believes national holiday on January 26 should be abolished

Voice advocate says Australia is soulless
Also says Australia is based on racism
Teela Reid wants Australia Day abolished

By David Southwell For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 01:04 BST, 9 July 2023 | Updated: 01:04 BST, 9 July 2023

An architect and advisor on the Voice To Parliament says the country is based on racism, has no soul and believes Australia Day should be scrapped.

Sydney lawyer Teela Reid is a member of the Voice Referendum Engagement Group which advises the government on ‘building community understanding, awareness and support’.

Ms Reid has outlined her strong views on Australia and Indigenous matters in a series of tweets this year while saying the Voice would be the first step in ‘redistributing power’.

‘Australia cannot handle the truth,’ she posted on her account.

‘There is no point in blackfullas trying to explain our pain to a nation without a soul, that is on white Australia to do the work on themselves, not mob.’

Sydney lawyer Teela Reid (pictured) is a prominent Voice architect and advocate who says Australia is based on racism

In another tweet she claimed that: ‘racism is synonymous with Australia’.

‘Australia wouldn’t exist without racism. Racism has nothing to do with the colour of your skin, it has everything to do with power & privilege,’ wrote.

Ms Reid appeared alongside Stan Grant during the ABC’s controversial coverage of the Coronation of King Charles III in May.

The segment focussed heavily on the impact the monarchy and colonisation have had on Aboriginal Australians and people of colour and sparked backlash.

In June Ms Reid contradicted Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney’s denials that the Voice would be offering advice on Australia Day.

‘It is truly disingenuous to be claiming mob won’t be demanding to #AbolishAustralia day,’ she tweeted.

‘It started decades before the referendum, it’ll still be a demand after it.’

Ms Burney said June the advisory body created by the Voice would not be interested in changing the date of Australia Day.

‘I can tell you what the Voice will not be giving advice on. It won’t be giving advice on parking tickets,’ she said.

‘It won’t be giving advice on changing Australia Day. It will not be giving advice on all of the ridiculous things that that side has come up with.’

Ms Reid has indicated changing the date of Australia Day is not enough and that it should be abolished or rebranded.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has described Ms Reid as part of a ‘remarkable’ generation of young Indigenous leaders

‘How very Aussie is this; let’s ignore history, find a new meaningless date to celebrate, and forget that the Blaks ever declared 26 Jan a Day of Mourning,’ she tweeted

‘It’s always been #AbolishAustraliaDay changing the date is a cop out.’

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described Ms Reid in January as part of the next generation of ‘remarkable’ Indigenous leaders.

She was a working group leader in creating the Uluru Statement of the Heart, the foundation document that proposes recognising Indigenous people in the Constitution by the creation of the Voice.

Previously she has called for reparations to be paid to Indigenous people.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Ms Reid for comment.

The referendum to establish the Voice will be held in the period of October to December.

To pass it needs to gain an overall majority of votes and also win approval in a majority of states.

What we know about the Voice to Parliament so far

Here, Daily Mail Australia looks at some of the key questions about the Voice so far, and how the government has tackled them:

What kind of advice can the Voice provide the Parliament and Government?

The Voice will advise on matters that directly relate to Indigenous people.

It will respond to requests made by the government, while also having the power to engage proactively on matters that they believe impact them.

The group will have its own resources to research matters and engage with communities at a grassroots level to ensure it is best reflecting their needs.

How will members of the Voice be chosen?

Members of the Voice will be appointed by Indigenous communities and will serve on the committee for a fixed period of time, yet to be determined.

The way the communities choose their representatives will be agreed upon by the local communities in tandem with the government as part of a ‘post referendum process’ to ensure cultural legitimacy.

Who can become a member of the committee?

Members of the Voice must be Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.

They will be chosen from across each state and territory and have balanced gender representation nationally.

The government has also guaranteed that young people will be included in the committee to ensure representation across the broad scope of the community.

Will the Voice be transparent?

The government states the Voice will be subject to scrutiny and reporting requirements to ensure it is held accountable and remains transparent.

Voice members will be held to standards of the National Anti-Corruption Commission and will be sanctioned or removed from the committee if there are any findings of misconduct.

Will the Voice have veto power?

No.

Will the Voice work independently of other government bodies?

The committee must respect the work and role of existing organisations, the government says.

Will the Voice handle any funds?

The Voice will not directly manage any money or deliver any services to the community.

Its sole role will be in making representations about improving existing government programs and services, and advising on new ideas coming through the parties.

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Read more at DailyMail.co.uk