National Reconciliation Week

Header image: Indigenous wall art at Box Hill High School by artist - Simone Thomson

National Reconciliation Week (NRW) is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

The Week runs from 27 May to 3 June every year. These dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey – the successful 1967 referendum and the High Court Mabo decision.

National Reconciliation Week then formally begins on 27 May. The date marks the anniversary of the 1967 referendum in which Australians overwhelmingly voted to remove clauses in the Constitution to allow the Commonwealth to make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and include them in the census. The referendum process formally began when the Constitution Alteration (Aboriginals) Bill 1967 was introduced and passed in the House on 1 March 1967. After later passing the Senate, 90 per cent of Australia voted to change the Constitution on 27 May 1967 and the bill became law on 10 August 1967.

National Reconciliation Week ends on 3 June – Mabo Day. The date marks the 1992 High Court of Australia decision in which the court found in favour of a group of Torres Strait Islanders, led by Eddie Mabo, and determined that they held ownership of Mer (Murray Island). The decision established native title – the recognition that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are the traditional owners of the land and that they have rights and interests to land and waters according to their traditional law and customs. As a result, the Native Title Bill 1993 was introduced and passed both chambers of Parliament the next year before native title came into effect on 1 January 1994.

National Sorry Day on 26 May marks the day that the landmark ‘Bringing them Home’ report was tabled in Federal Parliament in 1997.

It is a time to remember the past policies of forced child removal and reflect on the sad and painful stories of the Stolen Generations. It is a time to recognise the resilience of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples and the power of saying Sorry.

Source - National Reconciliation Week 2023 – Parliament of Australia

Box Hill High School Acknowledgement of Country

At Box Hill High School, we respect and build awareness with our students of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ connection to their land, culture and history. One of the ways we do this is by starting our meetings and assemblies with an Acknowledgement of Country. An acknowledgment that highlighted local people and place was developed by a group of students, teachers and the Koorie Education Support Officer in 2023.

Creating the Acknowledgment of Country was a significant step in the journey of reconciliation at Box Hill High School. We have also worked with local Indigenous artists to create murals around the school. 

Last year we planned and built an Indigenous garden that is now available for classes to have a yarn. To formalise our commitment to reconciliation we are developing a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) which documents the vision we hold for reconciliation at BHHS and the actions we will take in the next year. 

The work for the remainder of 2025 will focus on celebrating significant cultural events to build awareness of culture and history with our students and documenting the opportunities students have in the classroom to explore Aboriginal culture, practices and history. This will allow us to identify further opportunities that can be provided to students to develop their understanding.