A NEW group is seeking volunteers to help distribute information about the yes campaign on the upcoming Indigenous voice to Parliament referendum.<\/p>\n
Bendigo for Yes Campaign\u2019s convenor Sue Fricke said the group is working to promote support for the yes vote in collaboration with local Indigenous leaders.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur goal as a group is to support the education and information required in the community about the referendum, and to encourage the community to vote yes in the referendum,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
With a goal of having the largest yes vote in the nation, Ms Fricke said the group has about 100 volunteers who mainly help to distribute flyers and engage in conversations with people.<\/p>\n
\u201cA referendum doesn\u2019t happen very often for us, I think our job very much is to provide opportunities and place and space for people who don\u2019t know yet to get the information they need to help them make a decision,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople who are firmly in the no camp, I\u2019d like to think they\u2019d be open to a conversation to perhaps learn more, and maybe consider their position.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not out here to really change people\u2019s minds in a forceful way, we\u2019re very much a hopeful, respectful, optimistic campaign that just really wants to engage and help people understand the importance of this opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Ms Fricke said she thinks the question and outcome posed by the voice referendum is not a \u201cperfect solution\u201d and doesn\u2019t go far enough, she said the group wants to \u201ccapitalise on whatever we can\u201d.<\/p>\n
She also said she\u2019ll continue to work after the referendum for Indigenous empowerment regardless of the vote\u2019s result.<\/p>\n
Late last month Dja Dja Wurrung Corporation staff released a statement that said the group supports the yes vote, with CEO Rodney Carter saying the referendum will draw attention to matters \u201cthat are important to us and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people at a Federal level.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the past, we were left out of many conversations directly related to our wellbeing,\u201d said Mr Carter.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere in central Victoria, Djaara (Dja Dja Wurrung people) are strong believers in \u2018for Djaara, by Djaara\u2019 when it comes to issues that affect us.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A NEW group is seeking volunteers to help distribute information about the yes campaign on the upcoming Indigenous voice to Parliament referendum. Bendigo for Yes Campaign\u2019s convenor Sue Fricke said the group is working to promote support for the yes vote in collaboration with local Indigenous leaders. \u201cOur goal as a group is to support […]<\/p>\n