In late 2023, Australians will vote in a referendum to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia through an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice enshrined in the Constitution.

This week, we heard from Thirroul local Stephen Young.

My good work-mate and friend Adrian died of stomach cancer a few years ago. We wrote software together for big government departments in Canberra. Shockingly, as a child, Adrian often had to eat dog food for dinner because his Aboriginal mother struggled to put adequate food on the table. I miss him greatly.  There’s nothing I can do now about his cancer.

But I can do something in the next few months to improve the health of Aboriginal people in coming years. I can work hard to give them a say in their own affairs. I can vote “Yes” at the coming referendum. I can get the message out to my friends, neighbours and work-mates that this change is an important first step, a historic milestone for Australia. A Treaty and collective truth-telling about our past will hopefully follow.

I’ve worked for Canberra bureaucrats. With the best intentions, their solutions often take no account of local conditions and practices. A lot of money has been wasted on “solutions” that do not respect the views of Aboriginal people. Let’s give them a Voice instead, for better and more cost-effective solutions.

I hope that this change will make it much less likely that kids will be fed dog food for dinner. Please vote “Yes” at the coming referendum. You can help the Yes23 campaign by emailing your details to wollongongyes@gmail.com and following our local Facebook page.