CW: The feature image contains images of deceased persons.
Honi Soit operates and publishes on Gadigal land of the Eora nation. We work and produce this publication on stolen land where sovereignty was never ceded. The University of Sydney is a colonial institution that profits off the idea that Western ideologies are more worthy than the knowledge and practices of First Nations peoples.
Honi Soit is a publication that prioritises the voices of those who challenge these Western rhetorics and ways of teaching and learning. We strive to continue its legacy as a radical left-wing newspaper providing students with a unique opportunity to express their diverse voices and counter the violent biases of mainstream media.
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The editorial team of Honi Soit recognise that we are all beneficiaries of settler-colonialism. We live, work, write, and resist on lands that were forcefully and are continually stolen. Beyond the impending global dread of an unmitigated climate crisis, the land on which we meet is being desecrated, disrespected, and irreparably damaged under the guise of national pride.
So-called ‘Australia’ is an established settler-colonial project. We must acknowledge and fight the narrative that January 26th is a day to celebrate the ‘beginning’ of so-called Australia. January 26th marks the beginning of a stolen, colonised land. It marks an ongoing oppression that First Nations communities have had to endure, not only historically but in the present day. Tomorrow, a large majority of the population will be celebrating ‘Australia Day.’ Many believe they’re celebrating a day of Australian culture and history. However, many forget (or blissfully ignore) that this day is a direct reflection of the invasion, rape, genocide and forced child removals that have led to an inherently racist, anglocentric, and unequal culture endemic to Australian society.
Such ignorance is preventing Australia from moving towards justice for First Nations people. In the past year, we have seen a staggering and worrying increase in violence against First Nations people globally. There have been over 540 deaths in custody of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people since the 1991 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody; there have been no criminal convictions in relation to these deaths. The rates of forced removals of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are consistently and appallingly high. Though they only make up 6% of the total population, 41% of children in out-of-home care are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander. These are only a few of the inequalities and violence we are seeing in so-called Australia today. These issues were not 200 years ago. They were not a century ago. Not even a decade ago. This is today.
A narrative that greatly defined the voice referendum, leading the campaign to its “No” vote, was the idea that we’ve already reached a point of equality. What was meant to be an opportunity to push for real change in decolonising so-called Australia, instead, a debate arose with the arguments that law and policy are the only factors that play a part in equality. What we can see from the violence, overrepresentation and over policing of Indigenous people and communities distinctively disproves this narrative. We cannot accept or assume that our work is done.
We’re seeing this same narrative played out again with certain right-wing pundits and politicians suggesting that recognising the Aboriginal flag on a national level is divisive. These narratives have led to a major rise in racist, right-wing extremist attitudes, and a heightened level of censorship. Most recently, Sissy Austin, a Gunditjmara, Keerray Woorroong and Djap Wurrung woman presented an empowering TED talk detailing her deep connection to running marathons as an Indigenous woman, and overcoming her attack while running in the Lal Lal forest in 2023. When her speech was uploaded online, TEDx censored a line advocating for Palestinian lives. The media censorship of First Nations people internationally interrupts global solidarity and is the real divisive intervention that we must resist and overcome.
First Nations people suffer the inhumane treatment of these issues in a position of increased vulnerability. It is not a suffering they should undergo alone. We write and stand in solidarity with First Nations people to call for the abolition of ‘Australia Day’ and to work towards a future of decolonisation.
Join us at the Invasion Day Rally on Sunday 26th January at 10am.
Support local First Nation groups and Mutual Aid fundraisers:
Grandmothers Against Removals NSW
Indigenous Social Justice Association (ISJA)
From Gadigal to Gaza,
Always was, always will be
Aboriginal Land
Honi Soit Editorial Team 2025