“This Is Not a Day for You” : Indigenous Australians and the ‘Disruption’ of Anzac Day

This chapter examines the ways in which Indigenous Australian attempts to be recognised and included in official Anzac Day events have been discursively positioned as ‘disruptions’. Anzac Day operates within and reinforces established colonial expectations and norms around national identity, military service and the nature of remembrance. In doing so, it has traditionally excluded, hidden or minimised the experiences of individuals and conflicts that do not fit into these ideals. This has particularly been seen in the ongoing unease around the extent to which Indigenous Australian veterans and their communities have been able to participate in and shape Anzac Day commemorations—both in relation to overseas military service and frontier conflicts. This chapter frames its analysis discussion around three key themes: the physical body; language and culture; and warfare. By viewing Anzac Day as a colonial commemoration, this chapter connects the disruptions and debates around Anzac Day to the broader history of Indigenous-settler relations and negotiations in Australia, contrasting official narratives of inclusion with actions of exclusion, silencing and reinforcement of the colonial nature of Anzac Day.

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