‘Racism is a cancer’: Indigenous leaders condemn orchestrated booing at Anzac Day ceremonies

The dawn service at Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance was interrupted by booing on Saturday. Photograph: Ye Myo Khant/SOPA Images/Shutterstock View image in fullscreen The dawn service at Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance was interrupted by booing on Saturday. Photograph: Ye Myo Khant/SOPA Images/Shutterstock ‘Racism is a cancer’: Indigenous leaders condemn orchestrated booing at Anzac Day ceremonies Uncle Jack Pearson, an army captain, says heckling ‘not in the Anzac spirit’ after welcome to country booed in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth Indigenous speakers booed at services while Ben Roberts-Smith attends separate Gold Coast event Marcia Langton: The AFL bans disruptive racists. Surely police can do the same for morons who boo welcome to country Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Indigenous leaders have condemned people who booed welcome to country speeches at Anzac Day dawn services across the country, with an army captain stating “racism is a cancer”. Elders who spoke at services in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth on Saturday morning were booed following a campaign by Australia" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="120519" data-entity-type="organization">Fight for Australia, the group formerly known as March for Australia, which has previously staged major anti-immigration rallies. Uncle Jack Pearson, a Yimithurr man and a captain in the Australian Army, said “racism in any shape or form is a cancer to any society”. The Indigenous military expert said there was “nothing wrong with free speech and protest”. “But it’s got to be respectful, particularly on days like this … a very special day for all Australians,” he said. Welcomes and acknowledgments of country were solemn events, he said, recognising First Nations people “and their contribution to what we know as Australia today”. “First Nations people have been here since before the idea of Australia existed. Racism or racial bias is a disruptor to our common humanity in Australia – to who we are in Australia. It is not in the Anzac spirit.” Marcia Langton, laureate professor of Indigenous studies at the Melbourne" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="4494" data-entity-type="organization">University of Melbourne, said those who booed had committed a “despicable and ignorant … moral crime”. Writing in Guardian Australia, she said those who intentionally disrupted services should face bans. “The morons who tried to snatch the sacred moment away … deserve more than contempt and a few words of rancour,” Langton said on Saturday. “They should be named, photographed and banned from all future Anzac Day services. If the AFL can ban disruptive racists, the police forces of Australia should similarly be able to deal with these people.” At Sydney’s dawn service in Martin Place, a small but noisy group of interjectors shouted and jeered as Uncle Ray Minniecon was delivering his acknowledgment of country. After those disturbing the peace were quieted and the acknowledgment concluded, a chorus of applause and cheering by thousands rang for an extended period to show support for Minniecon. View image in fullscreen Uncle Ray Minniecon at Sydney’s dawn service on Saturday. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP “We do have laws to try and deter people from this, but it seems like these people still want to be lawless,” Minniecon, whose ancestry includes the Kabi-Kabi and Gurang-Gurang peoples of Queensland, said after the ceremony. Minniecon, a veteran himself whose grandfather served in the Light Horse Brigade, was instrumental in starting the annual Coloured Diggers event and march in Redfern, which honours the service and sacrifice of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander veterans. The total number of Indigenous Australians known to have served in the first world war is almost 1,000 – and research continues. From the Boer war on, Indigenous Australians have served, first for the British Imperial Army and then the Australian defence force, in every international mission. A similar disruption was drowned out in Melbourne, where Bunurong and Gunditjmara man Uncle Mark Brown delivered his welcome. Those booing were overwhelmed by cheers of support. View image in fullscreen Uncle Mark Brown at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne. Photograph: Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images At the King’s ceremony in Perth, Whadjuk Noongar elder and veteran Aunty Di Ryder was booed during her address. She also received a loud round of applause in support. The RSL WA chief executive, Stephen Barton, condemned the disruption as “one of the most disgraceful things I have ever heard”. Those commemorating Anzac Day in Adelaide also reported booing. The South Australian deputy premier, Kyam Maher, an Aboriginal man of Indigenous Tasmanian heritage, said it was “deeply unfortunate”. “Being welcomed to country is something that Aboriginal people have done for tens of thousands of years, welcoming other Aboriginal people to their particular country, and is something that is generously done,” he told the ABC. A 24-year-old man was arrested for an alleged act of nuisance at Sydney’s dawn service, New South Wales police said. He was subsequently charged with committing a nuisance on a war memorial and bailed to appear in court in early June. NSW police said “other people were moved on from the service”. Australia" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="120519" data-entity-type="organization">Fight for Australia had encouraged supporters to contact local RSL branches and ask that welcomes to country not be included in Anzac Day ceremonies. On Friday, the group wrote online, “Will you be booing the welcome to country this year?” alongside a video of Melbourne’s 2025 Anzac Day ceremony, where Brown was booed by members of the National Socialist Network. - Additional reporting by Australian Associated Press Explore more on these topics Anzac Day Race Indigenous Australians Australian military Sydney Melbourne Perth news Share Reuse this content