The Voice to Parliament is not just a "squabble about words" on paper, says a Goulburn woman.
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Wiradjuri woman and Pejar Aboriginal Land Council member, Cecelia McKenzie, will be voting yes when a referendum on a First Nations Voice to Parliament is put to the people later this year.
"There have been a lot of different opinions shared and they're all important and useful. However I think the political squabbling has detracted from the real message, which is connection," she said.
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The referendum will ask voters whether they support or reject: "A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice."
If approved, the Voice "may" make representations to the government and parliament.
Ms McKenzie has worked across the health and community sector for many years and said the "squabbling over wording" was at times frustrating.
"It's not just about words, it's about us," she said.
"It's about my father who spent his childhood in boys homes, it's me who experienced that (intergenerational) pain. It is general and palpable. It's not some wafty idea over there but is about people's lives."
Ms McKenzie is not surprised that more people in the regions are inclined to vote no at the referendum than those in metropolitan areas. Australian Community Media's survey of 10,131 people showed that 57 per cent of regional people against 55pc in metro areas, planned to vote no.
She believes there's not the same access to information but asks voters to consider the statistics.
"The reason we need a Voice is the disparity in statistics," Ms McKenzie said.
"Aboriginal people are more likely to die earlier than non-Aboriginals and the risk of going into out-of-home-care is greater. There are currently 26,000 children in out-of-home-care (up from 8000 at the time of former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's apology to the Stolen Generation).
"..There is not the same access to education and opportunity in the regions and that limits the ability to use the Voice to articulate concerns."
Ms McKenzie said she felt a deep responsibility to use her platform and express the views of those who didn't necessarily feel confident to do so.
She also cautions against assumptions that Aboriginal people have one view of the Voice.
"We're not one homogenous group; we're a rich, diverse group of people who are passionate about our culture and sustaining and protecting that. Each of those voices are important and should be provided a platform and respected in that," Ms McKenzie said.
She told The Post that if "executed effectively" the Voice would make a difference. But if rejected, it would be "devastating for First Nations people" and akin to a no vote in the 1967 referendum to recognise Aboriginal people in the census and legislate for them.
"I'm an eternal optimist," Ms McKenzie said
"I recognise the statistics are not as good as I'd like them to be but I hold out hope. Hope is all Aboriginal people have and it's why we are where we are today."
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