A proud Indigenous activist has revealed he plans to vote No in the upcoming Voice referendum because the concept is ‘not born out of black ambition’.
Just one month out from the historic referendum, support for the Yes vote has fallen off a cliff with polling suggesting the majority of Australians plan to reject the suggested change to the Constitution.
Ben Abbatangelo, a proud Gunaikurnai and Wotjobaluk man who is a former professional cricketer and writer, was originally in favour of the move. But now he says he’s a firm No.
‘It’s not born out of black ambition … it’s born out of what’s acceptable for constitutional conservatives,’ he told ABC’s Four Corners.
‘The idea that the people who stole this land, and then who directly benefited from it, are now going to a referendum to think about recognising the people they stole it off is insane.’
Ben Abbatangelo, a proud Gunaikurnai and Wotjobaluk man and former Melbourne Stars cricketer says ‘slow incremental change is killing us’. Pictured: Brooke Boney, who plans to vote Yes, with Mr Abbatangelo, who plans to vote No
The proud Indigenous activist (pictured) has revealed he plans to vote No in the upcoming Voice referendum because the concept is ‘not born out of black ambition’
The referendum, to be held on October 14, aims to enshrine First Nation’s People in the Constitution and establish a committee called the Voice to Parliament which will advise the government on issues affecting Indigenous Australians.
Mr Abbatangelo rejects the idea that the advisory body would be a positive step for the Indigenous community.
‘It’s not and we don’t have time. This go slow incremental change is killing us,’ he said.
‘I don’t wanna take a small step, in quicksand, with my feet tied together, I wanna lift us up out of it.
‘I wanna dream and remember what it is like to live freely autonomously, independent and I wanna maintain my dignity in pursuing that.’
Opposition to the Voice, championed by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, is also filtering through in remote Indigenous communities.
Jason Ford, who runs a small business and drives a school bus in Murdi Paaki in Brewarrina, Outback New South Wales, said although he wants to vote Yes, he’ll be casting a No ballot.
Jason Ford says elders in his community have asked the community to vote NO
Opposition to the policy championed by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, is also filtering through in remote Indigenous communities
‘I’ve been directed by my Elder to vote No,’ he explains.
‘Once my Elder tells me something, I’ve gotta respect what they say regardless. I don’t ask questions about that.
‘I’ll feel for them if it doesn’t get up, and I’ll be happy for them if it gets up … cause I respect what they’ve done.
‘I just hope it doesn’t change the way that people treat us, in a negative way. I hope it’s a positive outcome, either way.’
But not everyone is so pessimistic about what a successful Yes vote might mean for Australia.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar, from Fitzroy Crossing in WA, plans to vote Yes. She calls it a ‘great opportunity… to get things right’.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar plans to vote Yes because it’s an issue that ‘should be dealt with now by this generation’
She has been a decades-long advocate for women and children’s safety and hopes a successful Yes vote will give her people more say about what happens in Canberra.
‘We live these issues and are impacted by them daily … child protection, youth detention, housing … it does not make sense any longer for others to be making those decisions without us,’ she says.
‘I’d like to think we can address this now in our generation and not leave it for our children and grandchildren to struggle with.’
Many non-Indigenous Australians are also divided on how to vote.
Anne Vanderberg and Alan Coates accept changes need to be made to improve the lives of Indigenous Australians but aren’t sure about whether voting Yes is the right move.
Anne Vanderberg and Alan Coates are confused by the poor messaging on the Voice
‘I think it’s important but I don’t know what they right thing to do is,’ Ms Vanderberg said.
‘I feel ignorant. I have no idea how I should vote because there doesn’t seem to be a lot of detail.
‘I hear of Indigenous groups that are really for it, others that are dead against it umm and I really just don’t, I don’t know what I’m gonna vote because I don’t feel that I’ve got enough information.’
Mr Coates worries that whatever the result of the referendum, it feels like Australia has become more ‘divisive’.
‘It’s not bringing people together, it’s sort of driving a wedge [between us].’
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