Invasion Day ad compares Australia Day to tragic events in history
Updated
If you rented a movie in the 2000s, you probably know the anti-piracy campaign that famously asked: if you would not steal a car or a handbag, why would you steal a movie?
Now the ad has been revived by satirical site The Juice Media to compare celebrating Australia Day on January 26 to celebrating horrific events in world history.
The crowdfunded ad compares January 26, which marks the 1788 arrival of the First Fleet, to events including the September 11 attack on New York's twin towers, the day an atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima and the date Nazi Germany implemented the "Final Solution" to exterminate the Jews.
"Celebrating January 26 is kinda f***ed up," the video reads.
Instead of a person sitting at their computer illegally downloading films, the ad shows a girl cancelling her Australia Day plans on Facebook.
The words "Australia Day" are then changed to "Invasion Day".
The video ends on an image of European ships, featured in Meat & Livestock Australia's most recent ad, with the words "Piracy. It's a crime." followed by the hashtag #changethedate.
Aboriginal, Torres Straight Islander and wider community groups are calling for the date of the national holiday to be changed.
Many believe celebrating on January 26 is insensitive as the arrival of the First Fleet marked the beginning of a brutal history which saw mass killings of Indigenous Australians.
The post has already been viewed more than 260,000 times, drawing both praise and opposition and reigniting the debate of whether the date should be changed.
However, it was the ad's comparisons to other historic dates that caused the greatest stir on social media.
"This is completely untrue and unfair? You cannot compare those events to what happened to Australia," Grayson Woodham wrote on Facebook.
"Absolutely disgusting divisive comparison," Samantha Anders wrote.
"I understand the sentiment, but these are really poor examples. Not one of these events resulted in the creation of a sustainable society/civilisation," Shaun Fielding said.
This year Fremantle in Western Australia has cancelled Australia Day celebrations and will instead hold a culturally inclusive celebration two days after the contentious date.
"Though 26 January marks this specific event, today Australia Day celebrations reflect contemporary Australia: our diverse society and landscape, our remarkable achievements and our bright future. It also is an opportunity to reflect on our nation's history, and to consider how we can make Australia an even better place in future," The National Australia Day Council said.
Topics: community-and-society, national-days, australia-day, history, government-and-politics, australia
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