One of Australia’s most popular TV drama series has made an embarrassing mistake by flying the Aboriginal flag upside down.
Viewers of Home & Away took to social media last night to point out what should have been a very obvious mistake. The Aboriginal flag which was flown during the episode was flown upside down. The mistake was eventually noticed by at least one person on set, as the flag was later spotted flying in the correct manner. If they thought no one would notice, they were very wrong.
While some people said it was a simple mistake, others have pointed out that it is another sign of how little attention is paid towards Aboriginal culture. If the mistake was known by producers and not corrected, this also shows a lack of respect as they could have re-shot the scene but chose not to. Do you think they would have done the same if it was the Australian Flag that was upside down?
Anyway, everybody makes mistakes, sometimes intentional, sometimes not. What’s important is that we learn from them and use that knowledge to move forward to a place of better understanding.
This week is National Reconciliation Week, so why not take the opportunity to learn more about Aboriginal history, culture and people in your area. You can also learn about the fascinating symbolism, history and meaning of the Aboriginal flag here.
Even though the government doesn’t offer a national holiday during Reconciliation week, we would like to encourage as many people as possible to take part in a local event near you. After all, reconciliation is a two-way process that requires effort by both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.
