When we look backwards over Australian history, we see significant progress in addressing legal injustices for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. In 1992, the Mabo Decision rejected something called “Terra Nullius,” which claimed that Australia was a “land belonging to no one” before the British arrived. Mabo led to legal acknowledgement of the long-standing laws and rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on Country.
Less than 30 years prior to Mabo, Australians voted in the 1967 Referendum to count Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in our national census – they hadn’t been counted until then – and this finally gave the federal government power to address historic disadvantages. Only five years before that, the Commonwealth Electoral Act of 1962 granted Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples – who had faced serious barriers to voting – a guaranteed vote in elections for parties and policies that shaped their lives.
Although Australia’s laws have changed dramatically in the past century, our culture and education systems have sometimes lagged behind. For instance, in Australian history classes, we didn’t always know or tell the whole truth about frontier violence. It wasn’t until the 1990s that mainstream school curricula began to reflect what really happened, although they still varied across states and systems and among teachers.
Reconciliation Week at BAC focuses on respect and relationships. It involves understanding history and listening deeply so that our classrooms become places of genuine belonging and shared hope. It flows naturally from our values and ethos as a Christian community, where every individual is a valued child of God.
The 2026 Reconciliation Week theme aligns with our spiritual theme. “Dive in” and “All In” have the same beating heart. Life is not a spectator sport. It requires us all to listen, learn, and act together. It requires us to speak up, love one another as Christ loved us, and share in the action of reconciliation.
This week is not just an event on the calendar; it’s another step in God’s ongoing work of reconciliation in our nation and in our hearts. I hope we dive into that calling with open ears, open hands, and open hearts.
As we pass the words of Micah 6:8 each day on our Secondary campus, we are reminded of the kind of community we are called to be:
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
📸 The following photos were taken by Carlos Vera at our Reconciliation Chapel on Wednesday, 27 May 2026
