Michaelia Cash: There is no shame in national pride on Australia Day

Australia Day should always be a day when a vast, diverse continent pauses to reflect on what binds us together. Our shared citizenship, our freedoms, our hard-won prosperity and the values that have turned Australia into one of the most successful, stable and greatest nations on earth. As we look toward Australia Day 2026, it is time for Australians to reclaim the day as a confident celebration of everything that is great about this country and to draw a clear line under the woke culture of shame and division that has come to dominate parts of the national conversation. We live in the greatest country on earth. That is not blind nationalism; it is a conclusion supported by lived experience and global reality. Australia offers something rare in human history: a peaceful democracy, the rule of law, freedom of speech and belief, opportunity regardless of background, and the enduring promise of a fair go. These are not abstract ideals. They are the reasons millions of people from every corner of the world have chosen Australia as their home. Yet, in recent years, Australia Day has been steadily recast by activists as something to apologise for rather than celebrate. We are told that pride in our country is naïve at best, offensive at worst. Symbols that once united us, the date itself and the national flag are increasingly portrayed as sources of shame. This framing has done real damage, not because Australia is perfect, but because it denies the extraordinary moral, social and economic achievement that Australia represents. No nation is without a complex history. Australia is no exception. But maturity as a nation does not require self-loathing. It requires honesty balanced with perspective. We can acknowledge past injustices while also recognising how far Australia has come and how much good it continues to do for its people. A country that cannot celebrate itself will eventually struggle to defend the values that made it successful in the first place. Nowhere is this clearer than in the meaning of the Australian flag. Far from being a symbol of exclusion, it is one of unity. It is the flag under which Australians serve in uniform. It is the flag honoured at war memorials across this country, from small country towns to the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. It is the flag that has accompanied Australians through hardship, sacrifice and victory. Perhaps most importantly, it is the flag new citizens choose. For migrants who have fled war, persecution or poverty, the Australian flag represents safety, opportunity and a fresh start. It is a symbol of belonging. One people, in one country. To suggest that this flag should make Australians feel ashamed is to misunderstand its meaning to millions who have risked everything to live under it. Recent events have also reminded us why unity matters. The Bondi tragedy shocked the nation and underscored a hard truth: the freedoms and security we enjoy are not guaranteed by accident. They are sustained by shared values, social cohesion and a collective commitment to one another. In moments of crisis, Australians instinctively come together. We do not retreat into ideological camps; we stand side by side. That instinct for unity should define Australia Day, not be drowned out by manufactured division. There is a difference between constructive debate and corrosive cynicism. Those who seek to tear down national symbols or reduce Australia to its flaws alone are not offering a path forward. They are eroding the social trust that allows a diverse nation to function. Australia Day 2026 should mark a turning point. A day when Australians say, calmly and confidently, that we are done apologising for loving our country. A day when we reject the false choice between acknowledging history and celebrating the present. A day when we fly the Australian flag not as a provocation, but as a statement of shared identity and common purpose. This is not about denying debate or silencing dissent. It is about restoring balance. National days matter because they shape how a country sees itself. If Australia Day becomes nothing more than an annual exercise in self-reproach, we should not be surprised when national confidence erodes. But if it becomes, once again, a celebration of freedom, opportunity and unity, it can strengthen the social fabric that holds us together. Australia remains a country worth believing in. Australia Day should reflect that truth. In 2026, let it be the year we reclaim it proudly, peacefully and together. Michaelia Cash is a Liberal Senator for WA