National Sorry Day

Every year in Australia, on May 26, National Sorry Day is held. It is a day in which the people come together to remember the Indigenous Australians who were taken from their families; the stolen generations. These children were taken from their families to be assimilated during the 1950's and 1960's. They were brought up in institutions or by non-Indigenous families. This was official government policy in Australia until 1969. In the 1980's, welfare groups started to speak out against this practice. They said the government had been discriminating against the Indigenous people and that they should apologize. In 1999, The government issued a statement of regret for what they had done. However, they did not apologize. Many groups continued to protest, saying that the government needed to apologize. On February 13, 2008, Australia's Prime Minister Kevin Rudd officially apologized to Australia's Indigenous people, especially the stolen generations. They even proposed for a stop to the differentiating between life expectancy, educational achievement, and economic opportunity between indigenous and non- indigenous Australians. Now every year on May 26, all Australian's, both Indigenous and Non-indigenous remember the stolen generation. They have barbecues, concerts, street marches, flag raising events, dinners, and speeches from community leaders. Schools have essay contests and show films. Thousands of Australians sign "sorry books", books filled with the apologies of many different people. All of this is done in an effort to say sorry.