My Thoughts on the Referendum

Unconscious bias (1) occurs in many aspects of our lives, disadvantaging members of society through no fault of their own. Where the bias is identified, and societal will to change it activated, we have taken action to address the root causes of the bias.

Consider women's suffrage in Australia. Prior to Federation, the collective women's voice was not formally nor systemically represented in society (2). The suffrage movement of the late 1800s identified the bias and activated societal will to take action, resulting in Australia's Constitutional framers crafting Section 41, empowering the collective women's voice to be formally and systemically represented.

You see, the Australian Constitution is profound: it is the document that is the foundation of every single law in Australia. In the words of constitutional law expert, Professor Kim Rubenstein, "anything that happens in peoples' lives is in some way affected by the Constitution." (3) It is the root cause.

Australia's First Nations people are societally disadvantaged (4). A root cause of that disadvantage is the Constitution. To support this statement I offer a single fact: Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species in 1859.

Australia's First Nations people are societally disadvantaged by the Constitution

The book, and the scientific observations it contained, led to a revolution in our understanding of society and the world in which we exist. Darwin challenged the religious views underpinning society, solidifying the concept of natural selection and biological evolution. Darwinism spread rapidly through the intellectual class, and - significantly - into economics and politics. Its impact was so profound, "perhaps only the Bible and Koran are of comparable influence." (5)

Darwin's ideas were applied to societal structures and the ways in which they were governed. Indeed, "survival of the fittest" is not a quote from Darwin, but rather from English philosopher, sociologist, and anthropologist Herbert Spencer. In Spencer's view, wealthy members of society were naturally more fit and more deserving than the poor. These thoughts extended to people of different races, with some races considered less worthy, and condemned to non-survival of the un-fittest.

Social Darwinism (6) was prevalent at the time of the framing of the Constitution. It led to specific bias against First Nations people through Sections 25, 51(xxvi) and 127 and general bias throughout the entire document.

To be clear, I am stating the entire Constitution is biased against Australia's First Nations people, leading to systemic and enduring societal disadvantage.

| The evidence is clear.

| The bias exists.

The question, therefore, is do we have the societal will to change it?

For me, the answer is a resounding YES. We must address the root cause of the bias, which is the poorly-represented voice of First Nations people in our Constitution. That is why I will be writing YES on the referendum ballot paper on October 14.

If you have read through to the end of this article, I beseech you to separate your independent thoughts from the societal influences that may cause you to be unconsciously biased. I'm not telling you to vote one way or the other, merely asking your innately and individually human nature to inform your decision.

I'm not going to get into a discussion of the relative merits of the Yes and No campaigns, except to say I have yet to hear a rational reason to not vote yes in the referendum. I consider myself educated, widely read, and with varied experiences. I am also a tall white man with every unconscious bias privilege in my favour.

(1) Unconscious biases are social stereotypes that we hold, outside of our conscious awareness. They are influenced by our experiences and cultural contexts, and can affect our attitudes and behaviours. See more here.

(2) In 1894 the South Australian parliament passed the Adult Suffrage Bill 1894, becoming the first Australian colonial government to empower women's voice through voting rights. Western Australia followed suit by passing the Constitutional Amendment Act in 1899. The Acts resulted in women's representation entering the discussions of the Constitutional framers, resulting in Section 41 of the Australian Constitution, allowing women who could already vote in their colony to retain their right to vote in their State after Federation. It also meant that, after Federation, the parliament had to enact legislation empowering women in all States to vote, and to stand for election to the Australian parliament. Edith Cowan, a leader in the Western Australian suffrage movement, became the first female member of an Australian parliament: her image adorns our $50 banknote and a university is named after her.

(3) Listen to Professor Rubenstein on ABC Radio's Conversations podcast

(4) Societal disadvantage takes many forms, and the Closing The Gap report is one source of evidence. The symptoms include lower life expectancy, higher child mortality, higher rates of unemployment, higher incarceration rates, higher rates of poverty, and many more. The Productivity Commission publishes key updates on indigenous disadvantage.

(5) Ebenstein, A.O. (2015) Chicagonomics: the evolution of Chicago free market economics, St. Martin's Press. Get it on Amazon here.

(6) See more here, or for Social Darwinism in Australia see more here.