Still cannot get over the deeply moving tribute of Noel Pearson at the Whitlam memorial today. It was a eulogy of power, beauty and humour, delivered with a rhythm reminiscent of Martin Luther King’s I Have A Dream speech, 51 years earlier. “We salute this old man for his great love and dedication to his country and to the Australian people. When he breathed he truly was Australia’s greatest white elder and friend without peer to the original Australians.” This will, in time, be recognised as one of the nation’s truly great speeches and a moving valediction to a fallen leader.He barely mentioned Whitlam’s name as if he were honouring the dead in his own people’s way. He called him: “This old man.” He said: “This old man was one of those rare people who never suffered discrimination but understood the importance of protection against its malice.” To a roar of applause he declared the government of 1972 to 1975: “The textbook case of reform trumping management.” “Only those who have known discrimination truly know its evil. Only those who have never experienced prejudice can discount the importance of the Racial Discrimination Act. This old man was one of those rare people who never suffered discrimination, but understood the importance of protection from its malice,” Pearson said. He listed the he Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders’ (Queensland Discriminatory Laws) Act and Racial Discrimination Act as among Whitlam’s most life-changing reforms for the Indigenous population. “We salute this old man for his great love and dedication to his country and to the Australian people. When he breathed, he truly was Australia’s greatest white elder and friend without peer of the original Australians,” he said. Pearson also invoked the Monty Python sketch “what have the Romans ever done for us?” when referring to people who tried to downplay Whitlam’s legacy. “Apart from Medibank and the Trade Practices Act, cutting tariff protections and no-fault divorce and the Family Law Act, the Australia Council, the federal court, the Order of Australia, federal legal aid, the Racial Discrimination Act, needs-based schools funding, the recognition of China, the Racial Discrimination Act, the abolition of conscription, the Law Reform Commission, student financial assistance, the Heritage Commission, non-discriminatory immigration rules, Aboriginal land rights, paid maternity leave for public servants, lowering the minimum voting age to 18 years and fair electoral boundaries and Senate representation for the territories. Apart from all of this, what did this Roman ever do for us?” he said.
Posted on: Wed, 05 Nov 2014 10:19:34 +0000
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