March in March is back! With hundreds of thousands of Australians getting ready to protest the Turnbull Government's unfair policies on Saturday, writes organiser Jane Salmon.
IN 2014 AND 2015, March Australia rallies brought people together to express their concerns about then Prime Minister Abbott's lies to the electorate and the overall LNP/IPA policy agenda, including austerity cuts and climate denial.
In all, more than 200,000 people walked with us around the nation and across many events.
Single issue rallies led by parties, unions and other groups also drew on the concerns of ordinary punters, who had found their voice within the March Australia network.
They did it with wit. The Shady Bunch memes, self-drawn coloured cartoons and jokes amazed and amused us all.
Happily, the LNP subsequently unseated their gaffe-prone leader, Tony Abbott. Abbott 's methods, values and crude stratagems polarised, but also galvanised, Australia.
Sadly, a change of leader is not a change of system. Current Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull seems slightly sleeker and greyer. However, the conservative and religious extremism unleashed by Abbott has retained a life of its own within and around Cabinet.
Almost everything Malcolm Turnbull once claimed to hold dear has been crushed to death under the bear hug of unfettered market forces, or shed simply to retain power.
While the front-man has changed, our nation is still stuck with a series of half-baked right wing policies, corrupt political rorts and inefficient government. And Australia now faces the rise of One Nation's special brand of right wing selfishness, racist obsession and preference manipulation.
Voters have waited politely to see whether Prime Minister Trumble could turn it around and regain the upper hand.
We've waited enough.
So ... after a hiatus to absorb change and recover from the effort of creating our own grassroots movement from scratch, March Australia is back.
What is March Australia? Well, right now it is calling itself Stand Up Australia and operates under the umbrella of March Australia Activist Interchange, which is incorporated in NSW.
It is a patchwork of local groups, directly reflecting authentic grassroots concerns.
Ultimately it is you — the person making a quirky or witty sign and attending a rally. And it is also people like me who are simply unable to stand by and watch the demolition of all we hold dear.
Sick of your well-thought-out values and positive ideas being ignored by major parties or the mainstream media?
Wanting a fairer go for everyone?
If so, you are March Australia.
March Australia is resiliently campaigning for long-overlooked values like compassion or jobs in renewable energy.
It is people wanting systemic change to halt corruption.
March Australia has a memory of what seemed possible for Australia seven years ago. It also expects far more than any party has yet delivered in Government.
Key issues vary each year but reflect a broad progressive agenda. Core topics remain the same.
These include the whole gamut from environmental concerns to fear for civil liberties and human rights. Protecting wages, work conditions and jobs is compatible with a basic income but perhaps not a blanket welfare card. Cuts to public education, public health and steady privatisation sell offs make us angry. Human rights violations and abuse of people detained by government or governments revolt us.
Almost all that MA does is independent and self-generated. It reflects the concerns of participants.
MA is independent of all political organisations and parties. Sometimes other groups like GetUp! have pitched in to spread the word.
That said, the March movement attracts more left, Greens and Labor voters than LNP or One Nation members. New progressive groups are not turned away. It attempts not to be subsumed by older interest groups or those with a less than peaceful agenda.
Occasionally a supporting organisation donates the sound system or some printing ... but that's it. Your self expression is us.
Feel very welcome to be part of the MA momentum. We continue to seek deep change, provide avenues for self expression and public catharsis.
We hope to see you on the streets this Saturday, 25 March 2017.
Rallies will take place in nine locations on Saturday 25th March, as listed below:
11.30am to 2.00pm, Victoria Square, Adelaide.
2.00pm to 4.00pm, Central Park, Armidale.
12.00pm to 2.00pm, Queens Gardens, Brisbane.
3.00pm to 5.00pm, The Lawns, Wharf One, Cairns.
10.45am to 1.00pm, Carrawah Reserve.
11.00am, Nambucca Plaza.
1.00 – 4.00pm, Pacific Park, Newcastle.
1.00pm to 4.00pm, Belmore Park, Sydney.
Extra internet platforms for those who cannot reach rallies
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License
Remember when Lyndon Morley carried a "Resign, Dickhead" banner at March in March and Blot called him a... http://t.co/yRT2yNXE38— DoubleDissolution (@DbleDissolution) June 5, 2015
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