Every Australian Citizen needs to read this!
The year is 1907, over One Hundred and Nine years ago....
Sir Edmund Barton's ideas on Immigrants and being an Australian in 1907.
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'In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an Australian and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the person's becoming in every facet an Australian, and nothing but an Australian... There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an Australian, but something else also, isn't an Australian at all. We have room for but one flag, the Australian flag.... We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language... and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the Australian people.'
Edmund Barton - 1907
(For those who don't know Edmund Barton was Australia's first PM)
Agree ? or not !!. This is
the sort of criteria we should adopt when "Welcoming" those from afar
to these shores... To leave their allegiances behind and take Australia
as their "country of choice"... To leave their prejudices behind and
open their heart to what we hold dear, openness and equality for all
who embrace this land as theirs... And to learn English the Sovereign Language of Australia...
This is not too much to ask of those who "
Choose " to move here... Is It.???