Is Anzac Day Misrepresented
- Submitted by: nataliebuck
- Views: 226
- Category: History: World Wars
- Date Submitted: 02/28/2015 11:00 PM
- Pages: 3
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The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) landing at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915 gave us the date and name of Anzac Day. News of the landing saw outpourings of national pride, and it became clear that its anniversary was the appropriate day for commemoration.
It is a day to remember the ANZAC’s who didn’t return showing we will always make sure their ultimate sacrifice is never forgotten. For those who did return should stand a foot taller as they march for those mates left behind and for the scars they quietly carry.
This is a day in which we should teach children to attend with pride as they show their respect. We come together as a nation to reflect and acknowledge that although war should not be glorified; those who fought for our freedom deserve our deepest gratitude.
Anzac Day was first commemorated at the Australian War Memorial in 1942 and marches didn't start until 1965. So how did we get to this? Historian Clare Wright shares her thoughts.
"… Anzac Day became used as a political opportunistic tool for rallying the nation behind a particular version of Australia's history.”
“And the problem with that is that unless we invest Anzac Day with the historical complexity that it deserves, the whole day risks becoming a sideshow – a circus”
Clare Wright argues that Anzac Day has grown so much that it is now overshadowing other important days and that details such as the way the war tore apart a nation have been lost in a commemoration that too often recently has bordered on celebration.
Just like Claire Wright there are others who believe ANZAC Day glorifies war, that it’s part of a deliberate strategy to persuade current campaigns.
It’s one thing to honour the bravery and self-sacrifice of those who acted in defense of our country. It is another matter altogether to present war participation as a noble occasion in itself or have it show some proof of our ‘manhood’ and national identity.
However the director of the War Memorial, Dr Brendan...
It is a day to remember the ANZAC’s who didn’t return showing we will always make sure their ultimate sacrifice is never forgotten. For those who did return should stand a foot taller as they march for those mates left behind and for the scars they quietly carry.
This is a day in which we should teach children to attend with pride as they show their respect. We come together as a nation to reflect and acknowledge that although war should not be glorified; those who fought for our freedom deserve our deepest gratitude.
Anzac Day was first commemorated at the Australian War Memorial in 1942 and marches didn't start until 1965. So how did we get to this? Historian Clare Wright shares her thoughts.
"… Anzac Day became used as a political opportunistic tool for rallying the nation behind a particular version of Australia's history.”
“And the problem with that is that unless we invest Anzac Day with the historical complexity that it deserves, the whole day risks becoming a sideshow – a circus”
Clare Wright argues that Anzac Day has grown so much that it is now overshadowing other important days and that details such as the way the war tore apart a nation have been lost in a commemoration that too often recently has bordered on celebration.
Just like Claire Wright there are others who believe ANZAC Day glorifies war, that it’s part of a deliberate strategy to persuade current campaigns.
It’s one thing to honour the bravery and self-sacrifice of those who acted in defense of our country. It is another matter altogether to present war participation as a noble occasion in itself or have it show some proof of our ‘manhood’ and national identity.
However the director of the War Memorial, Dr Brendan...