Elders and elder statesmen
There were so many fine moments on Wednesday (immediately dubbed ‘Sorry Day’). Much joy, much sorrow, much poignancy. Awe at the extraordinary well of generosity evident in Aboriginal Australia. Stolen survivor Archie Roach singing his incredibly moving ‘Took the Children Away‘ in Melbourne, an award-winning song that pre-dates the Bringing Them Home report, at a time when many Australians ‘didn’t know’. And there are many great photos. Here are two more.
Legendary political reporter Michelle Grattan hailed the sight of Kevin Rudd and Brendan Nelson standing ‘shoulder-to-shoulder at the dispatch box‘ as an extraordinary moment "and, hopefully, a glimpse of the future for indigenous policy."
Here too are 5 Australian Prime Ministers, shoulder to shoulder. A happy looking bunch: Bob Hawke, Gough Whitlam, Malcolm Fraser, Paul Keating!, and the man of the moment, Kevin Rudd. The immediate past PM, John Howard was, understandably, absent. Speaking of shoulders, note Whitlam’s hand on the shoulder of his arch rival, Mal. (Was Mal always taller, or is Gough stooped with age?)
And here’s four of their fellow citizens assembled in the national capital. Thanks to Simon Jackman for this photo of Wednesday’s New York Times with Australia’s apology the prominent cover story.
Old Parliament House has Malcolm Fraser at 6 foot 4
http://www.oph.gov.au/content.asp?pageID=128
The National Archives has Gough Whitlam at 194cm
http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/fastfacts.asp?pmSelectName=21
194cm = 6 foot 4.38
So Gough is (was?) 6 foot 4 too, certainly not 6 foot 5. Too close to call on these figures.
Nice picture on the New York Times, though
The photo is from Reconciliation Australia. If you have photos of Sorry Day you would like to share, upload them to Flickr.