Harmony Day, an event officially expanded and renamed as Harmony Week for its 20th anniversary in 2019, is a government-declared observance celebrated annually on or around 21 March in Australia. It was introduced by the

Howard government The Howard government refers to the Government of Australia, federal executive government of Australia led by Prime Minister John Howard between 11 March 1996 and 3 December 2007. It was made up of members of the Liberal Party of Australia, Li ...

in 1999, and coincides with the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The colour orange is associated with the day. It has been criticised for being purely a celebration of

multiculturalism in Australia Multiculturalism in Australia is today reflected by the Multiculturalism, multicultural composition of its people, its Immigration to Australia, immigration policies, its Racial Discrimination Act 1975, prohibition on discrimination, equality be ...

, with no public acknowledgement of its roots, being a commemoration of the Sharpeville massacre in 1960 in South Africa, nor acknowledgement of the existence of

racism in Australia Racism in Australia comprises negative attitudes and views on race or ethnicity which are held by various people and groups in Australia, and have been reflected in discriminatory laws, practices and actions (including violence) at various time ...

Background

On 21 March 1960, police in South Africa gunned down 69 unarmed Black South African people protesting against the

pass laws In South Africa under apartheid, and South West Africa (now Namibia), pass laws served as an internal passport system designed to racially segregate the population, restrict movement of individuals, and allocate low-wage migrant labor. Also ...

in an event that became known as the Sharpeville massacre. Six years later, the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

created the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on that date. This day is commemorated in most of the world apart from Australia, and remembered as a day of mourning in South Africa.

History

The day was introduced by the

in 1999 to promote a singular and unifying notion of "Australian-ness" within multicultural policy. In 1998, Australian Prime Minister

John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. His eleven-year tenure as prime min ...

( Liberal-National Coalition) commissioned the Eureka Research to begin an

anti-racism Anti-racism encompasses a range of ideas and political actions which are meant to counter racial prejudice, systemic racism, and the oppression of specific racial groups. Anti-racism is usually structured around conscious efforts and deliberate ...

study to "explore and understand the subtleties and nature of racism in the Australia of the late 1990s, with a view to mounting an effective mass media and/or education anti-racism campaign". Among the conclusions of the study were that there was a need for an anti-racism campaign and a promotion of "living in harmony". According to multiple media reports, the outcomes of the research were not aligned with Howard's views that Australians were not racist. Commenting on the racially-motivated

2005 Cronulla riots The 2005 Cronulla riots were a series of race riots in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It began in the beachside suburb of Cronulla on 11 December, and spread over to additional suburbs the next few nights. The riots were triggered by ...

, he stated: "I do not accept that there is underlying racism in this country". The Eureka report was suppressed from public access until 2011. In 2003, the

Government of Western Australia The Government of Western Australia is the States and territories of Australia, Australian state democratic administrative authority of Western Australia. It is also commonly referred to as the WA Government or the Western Australian Governmen ...

renamed the event Harmony Week in that state, always celebrated in the same week: "celebrations from 15 to 20 March, followed by a day of reflection on 21 March". The event was renamed as Harmony Week by the

Morrison government The Morrison government was the Australian Government, federal executive government of Australia, led by Prime Minister of Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison of the Liberal Party of Australia, between 2018 and 2022. The Morrison governmen ...

for its 20th anniversary in 2019, "to recognise diversity and inclusion activities that take place during the entire week".

Overview

The Department of Home Affairs leads national celebrations for Harmony Week to recognise diversity and inclusion activities that take place during the entire week. Harmony Week is celebrated during the week (Monday to Sunday) that includes 21 March, which is the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Since 1999, more than 80,000 Harmony Week events have been held in childcare centres, schools, community groups, churches, businesses and federal, state and local government agencies across Australia. Text has copied from this source, which is available under
Attribution 3.0 Australia (CC BY 3.0 AU)
licence. Harmony Day (or Week) in Australia is regarded as a celebration, with few people aware of its origins. It is represented by the colour orange, which "signifies social communication and meaningful conversations... ndrelates to the freedom of ideas and encouragement of mutual respect". The wearing of the colour in the form of clothing or ribbons is encouraged, and community events such as multicultural morning teas are held in schools as a celebration of

, first-generation migrants enjoy receiving recognition of their traditions and culture on this day.

Calls for change

Criticism of Harmony Day has focused on the

multicultural Multiculturalism is the coexistence of multiple cultures. The word is used in sociology, in political philosophy, and colloquially. In sociology and everyday usage, it is usually a synonym for ''ethnic'' or cultural pluralism in which various e ...

aspect of the day and the shift in focus away from

. Emeritus professor Andrew Jakubowicz was critical of the 13-year governmental suppression of the original Eureka study, and the subsequent lack of research or focus on attempts to eliminate racism. Indigenous critics like Indigenous X CEO and founder Luke Pearson argue that while Harmony Day is perceived as a positive contribution to a multicultural society, the day does little to provide practical solutions to racial discrimination. Academic Christina Ho of the

University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The university was founded in its current form in 1988, though its origins as a Institute of technology, ...

says that Harmony Day does not deal with confronting aspects of racism such as police brutality, Aboriginal deaths in custody, and other forms of discrimination. She that the choice of the word "

harmony In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...

" in the name was "intentionally ideological... y avery socially conservative government that didn't want to acknowledge racism, didn't want to say sorry to Indigenous people". Anti-racism groups have highlighted media coverage at the time Harmony Day was introduced that proposed the Australian government was not doing enough to eliminate racism. Not-for-profit group All Together Now have questioned why Harmony Day was needed at all if there was no racism in Australia. The Secretary for the New South Wales Fabians, a left-wing think tank, argued that the day dilutes the UN marked event of its intended meaning, and that it avoids discussion of the structural barriers of racial discrimination. FECCA (Federation of Ethnic Communities' Councils of Australia), the national peak body representing people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, want the name changed back to the original one given by the UN – International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination – to open discussion, acknowledge that racism exists, and to focus on all working together to eliminate it, while also celebrating the diversity of cultures that Australia has. In March 2023,

Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly referred to simply as the Greens, are a Left-wing politics, left-wing green party, green Australian List of political parties in Australia, political party. As of 2025, the Greens are the third largest politica ...

senator Mehreen Faruqi wrote to Multicultural Affairs Minister Andrew Giles, saying that the government should revert to the original "name purpose and approach" of the day and that the current celebration "whitewashes this historic and ongoing racism in Australia". On 21 March 2023, Giles acknowledged the original name of the day on his website, publishing a media release which began "Every year in March, Australians come together to mark Harmony Week, culminating in the observance of the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on the 21st of March".

Footnotes

References

External links

* {{official, https://www.harmony.gov.au/ Multiculturalism in Australia March observances Anti-discrimination law in Australia