National Reconciliation Week

{{Short description|Australian observance of Indigenous cultures}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}} {{use Australian English|date=April 2020}} {{Infobox recurring event | name =  | native_name = | native_name_lang = | nickname = | logo = | logo_alt = | logo_caption = | logo_size = | image = | image_size = | alt = | caption = | status =  | genre =  | date = 27 May to 3 June | begins =  | ends =  | frequency = Annual | venue = | location = | coordinates =  | country = Australia | years_active =  | first =  | founder_name =  | last =  | prev = | participants = | attendance = | capacity = | area = | budget = | activity = | leader_name = | patron = | organised =  Reconciliation Australia | filing = | people = | member = | sponsor =  | website =  | current = | footnotes = }} '''National Reconciliation Week''' ('''NRW''') is intended to celebrate Indigenous history and culture in Australia and foster reconciliation discussion and activities. It started as the '''Week of Prayer for Reconciliation''' in 1993, developing into National Reconciliation Week in 1996.

It is held from 27 May to 3 June each year. These dates mark the anniversary of the 1967 referendum (27 May) and the date in 1992 that the Mabo decision was made in the High Court of Australia (3 June, Mabo Day).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-05-26 |title=What is Reconciliation Week and why are the dates significant? |url=https://www.sbs.com.au/language/english/en/article/reconciliation-is-everyones-business-says-community-leader-ahead-of-national-reconciliation-week/p541crr8m |access-date=2025-05-27 |website=SBS Language |language=en-au}}</ref>

==History and background== {{further|Reconciliation in Australia}} In 1991, the Australian Parliament unanimously created the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation (CAR) with funding until 2001.<ref>{{cite web | title=Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation | website=Australasian Legal Information Institute (AustLII) | url=http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/orgs/car/council/spl98_20/council.htm | access-date=5 June 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Payne |first=Anne Maree |last2=Norman |first2=Heidi |date=2025-05-23 |title=Corroboree 2000, 25 years on: the march for Indigenous reconciliation has left a complicated legacy |url=http://theconversation.com/corroboree-2000-25-years-on-the-march-for-indigenous-reconciliation-has-left-a-complicated-legacy-252805 |access-date=2025-06-05 |website=The Conversation |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 1993, major religious groups in Australia established the Week of Prayer for Reconciliation.<ref name=prayer>{{cite web|url=https://www.reconciliation.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Lets-talk...Reconciliation.pdf|title=Let's talk... reconciliation: National Reconciliation Week|publisher=Reconciliation Australia|date=2014|access-date=5 June 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Rodrigues |first=Marilyn |date=2024-05-27 |title=Reconciliation week: a time for prayer and healing |url=https://catholicweekly.com.au/reconciliation-week/ |access-date=2025-06-05 |website=The Catholic Weekly |language=en-AU}}</ref> In 1996, the CAR expanded this into the first National Reconciliation Week.<ref name=timeline>{{cite web|url=https://www.reconciliation.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/reconciliation-timeline_2017.pdf|title= National Reconciliation Week 2017: 27 May to 3 June: Reconciliation timeline|publisher=Reconciliation Australia|date=2017|access-date=5 June 2020}}</ref>

In 2000, an estimated 250,000 people walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and in Brisbane, the People’s Walk for Reconciliation attracted an estimated 70,000 people.<ref>{{cite web | last=Smith | first=Douglas | title=On this day National Reconciliation Week closed with 70,000 marching through Brisbane | website=NITV | date=4 June 2020 | url=https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/2020/06/04/day-national-reconciliation-week-closed-70000-marching-through-brisbane | access-date=7 June 2020}}</ref>

In 2001, Reconciliation Australia was established to replace the CAR, including its organisation of National Reconciliation Week.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-05-31 |title='Cop-out from the prime minister': How did the reconciliation movement begin in Australia? |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-01/national-reconciliation-week-voice-to-parliament-treaty/102397656 |access-date=2025-06-05 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}</ref>

==Description== National Reconciliation Week is intended to celebrate the history and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia, and foster reconciliation discussion and activities.<ref name=nrw2025>{{cite web |title=NRW2025 Theme: Bridging Now to Next |website=Reconciliation Australia |url=https://www.reconciliation.org.au/our-work/national-reconciliation-week/ |access-date=9 January 2025|archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20241218033439/https://www.reconciliation.org.au/our-work/national-reconciliation-week/|archive-date =18 Dec 2024 |url-status =live }}</ref>

The day before the start of the week, 26 May, is National Sorry Day, first held in Sydney in 1998 and now commemorated annually to honour the Stolen Generations.<ref name=prayer/><ref name=timeline/>

The theme of NRW 2025 is "Bridging Now to Next" reflecting the continuing connection between past, present, and future.<ref name=nrw2025/>

==Reconciliation Day== {{Distinguish|Day of Reconciliation|National Day for Truth and Reconciliation}} {{Infobox holiday | holiday_name = Reconciliation Day | type = | image = | imagesize = | caption = | official_name = | nickname = | observedby = Australian Capital Territory | litcolor = | longtype = | significance = | begins = | ends = | date = First Monday after or on 27 May | date2020 = 1 June | date2021 = 31 May | celebrations = | observances = | relatedto = | duration = 1 day | frequency = Annual }}

'''Reconciliation Day''' is a public holiday in the Australian Capital Territory marking the start of National Reconciliation Week. It is held on the first Monday after or on 27 May, the anniversary of the 1967 referendum. It was held for the first time on 28 May 2018.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cmtedd.act.gov.au/open_government/inform/act_government_media_releases/rachel-stephen-smith-mla-media-releases/2017/reconciliation-day-public-holiday-an-australian-first|title=Reconciliation Day Public Holiday an Australian first|date=14 September 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Burgess|first1=Katie|title=ACT first Australian jurisdiction to gazette Reconciliation Day public holiday|url=http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/act-first-australian-jurisdiction-to-gazette-reconciliation-day-public-holiday-20170912-gyfmdq.html|accessdate=14 September 2017|work=Canberra Times|date=14 September 2017}}</ref>

==See also== * NAIDOC Week, held annually in the same week as International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples. *Reconciliation in Australia

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== *{{cite book|title=The State of Reconciliation in Australia: Our History, Our Story, Our Future: Summary|isbn =978-0-9945103-1-0|quote=Twenty-five years after the establishment of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation (CAR), this report examines the state of reconciliation in Australia today.|date=February 2016|author=Reconciliation Australia}} *{{cite web | last=Smith | first=Douglas | title=On this day National Reconciliation Week closed with 70,000 marching through Brisbane | website=NITV | date=4 June 2020 | url=https://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/2020/06/04/day-national-reconciliation-week-closed-70000-marching-through-brisbane}}

==External links== *{{official|https://www.reconciliation.org.au/national-reconciliation-week/|Reconciliation Australia: National Reconciliation Week}}

Category:Australian Aboriginal culture Category:Indigenous Australian politics Category:May observances Category:June observances