- Image source (used with permission)
Australia
O Australia
The country fair
In which a white man
Took the lectern
Faced a national audience
And called for silence and respect
To tell an innocent black man that he was not that important
And that his maltreatment was just.
Australia
O Australia
The country fair
In which that same white man
Took the lectern
Faced a national audience
And called for silence and respect
To tell a guilty white man that his crimes were not so awful
And that his maltreatment was unjust.
Australia
O Australia
The country fair
In which many a white man
Takes a metaphorical lectern
Faces any audience
And expects silence and respect
To tell others how they should behave
And what to expect.
Australia
O Australia
The country fair
So fair, you could argue
That it’s white.
—
Written for a competition last year; published here, now, with the blessing of the competition organisers. There is no place for racism in Australia.
Beautifully articulated, as always x
Thank you, Mel. x
Words so eloquently said which must be read & understood.. Thank you Emily.
How lovely. You’re welcome, Denyse. x
You said it. And so beautifully too. Thank you x
Thanks Sammie. I wish I’d had the guts to publish this last year. x
So powerful Emily – wow. Sticks in my mind, this is going to be twisting around and around … Thank you for sharing!
Thanks, Helen. Glad it spoke to you.
Em
you have said this far more eloquently than I did. I recently wrote a big long post about Australia’s dirty little secret of racism.
Beautifully expressed.
Thank you, Cat. Will head your way to see your big, long post!