Banning the Aussie Flag on Australia Day
By specK113
@specK113 (46)
Australia
January 21, 2007 10:02pm CST
Concert organizers for the Big Day Out have "discouraged" concert goers from bringing the Aussies flag to the Sydney festival because it is deemed as wearing "gang colours"! Yeah I know we had a riot at the Australian Open last week, but why shouldn't we be allowed to show our patriotism at big events on Australia Day?
1 person likes this
6 responses
@western_valleygirl (1363)
• United States
22 Jan 07
They are discouraged from bringing their own flag? Really? That is strange. You would think that there would be some respect and pride in carrying your nation's flag. That is a shame. I am not sure why the riot broke out, but if it is becoming that people have no respect for their own flag, then, they need to work on the people. That is not a good example for others to see (around the world)...
@western_valleygirl (1363)
• United States
7 Feb 07
That is hilarious! What does patriotism have to do with race? They should have been more specific, and stated immigration or something, because that is probably what they mean...that there are many immigrants, and so they do not want to have issues because of that...or I could be wrong. But, still it is odd.
@urbangirl (1456)
• Australia
8 Feb 07
I think it's because at LAST year's event the flag was indeed hijacked by some yobbos who were intimidating to other concert goers. This is in the wake of the Cronulla riots in which people carrying the flag went on a mad rampage at the beach bashing anyone who looked middle-eastern as "revenge" for two life savers being attcaked by middle-eastern men.
Eg. at the concert they were making people kiss the flag and if they refused, they were abused and harrassed. I guess the concert goers wanted to avoid this sort of thing at this year's event, but the way they went about it made it a bigger issue in the news. It would have been far better to say that anyone who was anti-social would be tossed out.
@Ruralchook (538)
• Australia
26 Jan 07
You've got to be friggin joking!
What the bugger happened to "Its a free country"?
The idiots should get off their high horse's and realize that they are actually committing a National crime by not allowing the Australian Flag. And I hope someone can charge them with it.
Oh I cant wait to see the upraw our War Hero's make, and Im going to be 1001% behind them.
Gang colours my butt....
@Tanika (632)
• Australia
25 Jan 07
Heya, No I didnt hear about this but it is pretty extreme. Isn't it meant to be the one day of the year that we all be proud of being Australian no matter our race rather than segregating ourselves like usual? I didn't hear about the riot at the Australian open either, I wonder what rock I was under? What happened? Why did they riot?
Tanika.
@kathy77 (7486)
• Australia
26 Jan 07
WYes you are right that the Aussie flag for Australia Day was banned but did you notice that the ban was lifted, as their were just too many of us Aussies there and the concert organizers said they would never do this again to try and ban us from our Australian flag and I am happy to say I am an Aussie, that is very proud to be one. Why should we not show that we are proud and if they other countries do not like it then we should protest and send them back to their own countries.
@Aussies2007 (5336)
• Australia
25 Jan 07
So Australia is no more...
Australians are now treated like strangers in their own country. Equality in Australia means that after contributing for years towards making Australia a better place... you should not proclaim to be any better or different than the immigrant who landed yesterday.
Maybe that Muslim leader was right after all. Maybe the Muslims have more right to own Australia that the anglo-saxons do. It certainly starting to look that way.
Vive the multi-culturalism...
Australia was doing fine with its 135 different nationalities. Until the Muslims decided to throw a spanner into the work by bringing their religion into it.
@Zempnsazza (59)
• Australia
26 Jan 07
Apparently around 30,000 people wore the flag to the Big Day Out in opposition to the ban, which is a very Aussie statement of 'get stuffed, we love our country'.
I think the ban happened because there was a group of guys wearing the flag last year running around causing trouble, beating people up and being drunk dixmax. And because there have been riots they thought they were being careful.
It's so wicked how everyone wore the flag, wish I could have been there but the BDO doesn't come to Tassie.
