The Aboriginal Flag

By now you may know that the Australian Government has secured the copyright licence for the Aboriginal Flag following negotiations with Luritja artist and land rights activist Harold Thomas, who designed the flag in 1971. It will now follow the same protocols as the Australian National Flag, where its use is free, but it must be treated with respect and dignity.

"I hope that this arrangement provides comfort to all Aboriginal people and Australians to use the Flag, unaltered, proudly and without restriction,” Mr Thomas said.

“The Flag represents the timeless history of our land and our people’s time on it. It is an introspection and appreciation of who we are.”
“It draws from the history of our ancestors, our land, and our identity and will honour these well into the future.”

The colours of the flag represent the earth (red), the sun (yellow) and the Aboriginal people of Australia (black).

Knowing that we can fly the flag with pride and respect is an honour to our ancestors who have passed.

The flag represents so much to me especially when we talk about 26th January. It is a date that reminds me about systems that were not set up for my people; it is a date that reminds me of inequity and inequality; it is a date that continues to remind me that this country still has a long way to go in building strong and respectful relationships with the oldest continuing culture in the world. The date reminds me about why we needed a flag in the first place!

As we journey into 2022, I hope that all who love this country inspire each other with courageous conversations about race and develop strong and meaningful cultural yarns that can inspire us all to shift to a positive place of inclusiveness for all. It is now time for all of us to understand the true history of this country and that being ignorant is no longer an excuse! “I was not born with privilege; I was born with obligation”. Denice Kickett Key Assets Australia National First Nations Lead