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A Historical Perspective

Scott Morrison is an ostrich. His head in buried in sand. He says, 'There was no slavery in Australia'. Text beneath reads: 'Dark emu versus white ostrich'.

On 11 June, in the lead-up to the Black Lives Matter protests, Prime Minister Scott Morrison commented: ‘It was a pretty brutal place, but there was no slavery in Australia.’ The next day, he expressed regret over his remark, adding: ‘There have been all sorts of hideous practices that have taken place, and so I’m not denying any of that.’ Golding’s caption alludes to Bruce Pascoe’s prize-winning book Dark Emu (2014).

The Museum of Australian Democracy acknowledges Australia's First Nations peoples as the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia. We recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and community. We respectfully acknowledge the role that First Nations people continue to play in shaping Australia's democracy. We also acknowledge the Ngunnawal, Ngunawal and Ngambri peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the region in which MoAD is located.

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