I am Australian.

I come from the dream time
From the dusty red-soil plains
I am the ancient heart
The keeper of the flame
I stood upon the rocky shores
I watched the tall ships come
For forty thousand years I've been
The first Australian

I came upon the prison ship
Bowed down by iron chains
I bought the land, endure the lash
And waited for the rains
I'm a settler, I'm a farmer's wife
On a dry and barren run
A convict, then a free man
I became Australian

I'm the daughter of a digger
Who sought the mother lode
The girl became a woman
On the long and dusty road
I'm a child of the Depression
I saw the good times come
I'm a bushie, I'm a battler
I am Australian

We are one but we are many
And from all the lands on earth we come
We'll share a dream
And sing with one voice
"I am you are
We are Australian."

We could have a referendum on the National Anthem.
Let the people decide - which anthem they prefer.

Dear Canem Malum,

"Advance Australia Fair" has been sung by so many of us
with great gusto and emotion in the past. However,
with all due respect - I feel that this anthem in today's
Australia is not as inclusive as "I am Australian".

I have no interest in the anthem, or the words in it. It is quite ridiculous for a people to sit back, watching their country degenerate, and actually singing about it!

Trivial and as meaningless as changing one word in a song is, it is a serious matter that most Australians don't think that is NOT the job of one person to make the change. We are supposed to be a parliamentary democracy, but 2020 has certainly seen that idea knocked in the head. As one of our few real Aborigines says, it's not going to appease the professional Aborigines anyway.

"The National Anthem, like other national symbols of
a country, represents the tradition, history and
beliefs of a nation and its people. Hence, it helps evoke
feelings of patriotism among the country's citizens and
reminds them of their nation's glory, beauty and rich heritage".

Taken from the web.

That's why the suggestion that we could have a Referendum -
if needed on the subject, at the appropriate time, or
not.

The people and time will decide.

Hanrahan cautiously leaves his cave, throws curses at an evil and heartless world, then retreats back into safety.

If we were to adopt the Seekers' 'I am Australian', we would need to update it and put in a verse to welcome those many Australians who have come here to build and support the country over the past century. For example for everybody who has been in hospital in the past year, how much do you owe the Filipina or African or Indian nurse and her wonderful smile ? The wonderful doctors who have alleviated your pain ?

And who is doing so much of the slog-jobs out in the country and in factories ? They should be included in any new anthem. Frankly, I'm
not all that interested in thieves, I've got too many in my ancestry as it is (maybe Mad Dog Morgan is a relation, maybe Kelly, that would make sense).

So let's celebrate ALL Australians. There are no Grade One, Grade Two, etc. Australians, nobody with more or fewer rights than others: only Australians.

Joe

Dear Joe,

Perhaps all we really need is the last verse of -
"I am Australian" ?