On this year’s Survival Day tens of thousands of people gathered in Melbourne’s CBD for an Invasion Day rally. The rally started at Parliament house around 11am, where Aboriginal speakers talked about their ancestors and what Invasion Day meant for them. For many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People Survival Day is an opportunity to acknowledge the past and recognise the strength of our people, and the enduring nature of our culture. Despite the past and the discrimination and inequality that still takes place today, we are strong, and we survive.
VACCA’s own Rubii Red made a very powerful speech at the rally, which you can see here.
The rally ended at Federation Square, where protesters filled up the square and flowed onto Flinders and Swanston Street. After the rally many gathered at Treasury Gardens for the Share the Spirit festival, which is a festival that showcases the diverse styles of music created by Indigenous artists. The festival is an important cultural gathering for local and regional community.
VACCA was also very fortunate that a few venues put on events and fundraisers on the day in support of VACCA. We would like to give a MASSIVE thanks to The Tote, Will Lopez, The Evelyn Hotel, Jazz Party and Handsome Her for standing in solidarity with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People on Survival Day and supporting VACCA and the vision we work towards – That our children, young people, families and communities are thriving – culturally strong, empowered and safe.