Lidia Thorpe says The Voice has exposed Australia’s racism, calling it a ‘cancer on the country’
- Lidia Thorpe says the Voice has exposed racism
- She voted No in Saturday’s referendum
Indigenous senator Lidia Thorpe says the referendum campaign has exposed where racism exists in Australia as she casts her No vote in the Voice referendum.
Heading into the polling booth at the Northern School for Autism in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, Ms Thorpe wore a black T-shirt with ‘Vote No’ written across the chest.
She made the final call for Australians to vote against the Voice in parliament, standing in front of a group of Yes23 campaign volunteers wearing ‘Yes’ T-shirts.
“Racism is a cancer. “Racism is a disease, it makes people sick,” Ms Thorpe told reporters.
Lidia Thorpe says the referendum campaign has exposed where racism exists in Australia
Ms Thorpe has been a prominent voice on the No side of the referendum for an Indigenous voice in Parliament.
“This referendum has shown where the cancer is in this country and where we need to heal this country.
“Where we must make our efforts as a nation to eradicate this ugly thing called racism.”
The fiery senator has led the contingent of Indigenous Australians opposing the Voice in parliament on the grounds that the Treaty is the way forward and the Voice will be an ‘impotent’ body.
Ms Thorpe has led the contingent of Indigenous Australians opposing the Voice in parliament on the grounds that the Treaty is the way forward
More than 7000 booths opened in many states at 8am on Saturday and will remain available for Australians to cast their vote until 6pm.
Indigenous Australian Minister Linda Burney said she had ‘butterflies’ when she voted on Saturday morning, after urging those still voting to choose Yes.
“Today is a truly historic day in this country,” she said.
“There are one in five voters who still have to make up their own minds, and they’re going to vote today, and I want those people to vote yes.”
Australians are heading to the polls to vote on whether to include an indigenous advisory body, the Voice, in the Constitution.
About 9 million people will vote after Australians turned out in their millions at early polling stations over the past week, according to the latest figures from the Australian Electoral Commission.
The senator has captured the attention of Australians ahead of the October 14 referendum, regularly looking down the barrel of a camera lens as she delivers her unfiltered opinions on the issue.
She took to the stage in front of thousands of protesters on January 26, lifting it into the air for the first time in an impassioned speech that described the treatment of indigenous people since colonization.
‘This is a war. They are still killing us. They are still killing our babies. What do we have to celebrate in our country?’ she said.
Ms Thorpe took to the stage in front of thousands of protesters on January 26, lifting it into the air for the first time in an impassioned speech outlining the treatment of Indigenous people since colonisation.
Ms Thorpe this week accused Anthony Albanese of being ‘weak’ for ruling out any future iteration of the Voice in Parliament if the referendum fails.
Earlier this week, Ms Thorpe shocked many when she accused the Prime Minister of being ‘weak’ for ruling out any future iteration of the Voice in Parliament if the referendum fails.
‘That’s just weak. What a poor response. It’s like, ‘Oh, I’m going to throw down my stick and run. I don’t want to play any more attitude,’ she told ABC Radio National on Thursday morning.
Host Patricia Karvelas then asked if she thought the Voice should be legislated and the senator replied: ‘Why not? Let’s see how it works.’
However, that afternoon, the senator’s office issued a statement to clarify that it does not support the Voice, but that “truth and treaty are the first steps that must be taken to bring peace to this land.”
A week ago, Ms Thorpe was the target of a disturbing video message posted by neo-Nazi extremists, including racist death threats.
She accused the prime minister and the AFP of refusing to ‘protect’ her from threats and said the referendum has nothing but pain and misery.
