Invasion Day: Not a date to celebrate

As many Australians mark January 26 in their calendars, preparing for a long weekend of barbecues and catch-ups with friends, more and more people are pausing and choosing not to celebrate a date that does not reflect the values we aspire to as a nation.

For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, this day is not a celebration. It marks the arrival of the First Fleet, the raising of the British flag, and the beginning of a violent attempt to claim a land that was never theirs to take. The Commonwealth declared ownership over lands that were cared for and stewarded for tens of thousands of years – lands stolen through force, followed by decades of attempts to erase the world’s oldest continuing cultures.

Australia is unique among former British colonies: it remains the only one to mark its national day on the anniversary of colonisation. And for many Australians, this date no longer represents the country we want to be.

Being proud of Australia should mean standing for fairness, compassion, and the belief that everyone deserves dignity and safety. It should mean valuing courage, community, and looking out for those pushed to the margins. These are the principles we must hold at the heart of our nation.

At the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, we know the stories a nation tells about itself matter. They decide who belongs, whose pain is acknowledged and whose voices are heard. January 26 tells a story that excludes truth. It asks First Nations people to celebrate the very moment their lands were taken and their sovereignty denied. That is why we stand firmly with the Not a Date to Celebrate campaign.

This is not about erasing history – it is about finally telling it honestly. The impacts of colonisation are not relics of the past. They are visible in the over-representation of First Nations people in prisons, in deaths in custody, in the fight for land rights, and in enduring inequalities in health, housing and life expectancy. These are not accidents. They are the results of systems built on dispossession and exclusion.

As an organisation that works daily with people displaced by violence, injustice, and persecution, we recognise these patterns. We see how systems of power decide whose lives are protected and whose are made precarious. That is why our commitment to refugee justice is inseparable from our commitment to First Nations justice.

Solidarity is not symbolic. It is active. It means listening to First Nations leadership. Challenging comfortable narratives. Refusing to participate in celebrations that cause harm. And committing every day to building a country grounded in truth, dignity and self-determination.

We imagine an Australia that can hold its full history, not just the parts that are easy to celebrate. A nation strong enough to choose a day that unites, not one that reminds so many of loss.

Until that day comes, we will continue to stand with First Nations communities and say clearly: January 26 is not a date to celebrate.