It’s time to Close the Gap. Join the campaign today.
This month Australia celebrates the 40 year anniversary of the 1967 Referendum ” when 90 per cent of Australians voted to give Aboriginal people equal rights. It was an important step in our nation’s history and in granting Indigenous Australian the rights that they so deserve, but many would say that justice is far from being done.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are dying on average 17 years earlier than non-Indigenous Australians, while standards of living and levels of health and education remain far below the nation’s average.
In an attempt to raise awareness of the appalling state of health among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people a new Aboriginal health initiative has been introduced, demanding an end to health discrimination between white and black Australia,.
Close the Gap is the biggest ever campaign in Australia’s history to improve the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. It’s aim is to close the gap between the life expectancy of Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians.
The campaign was launched last month by Olympic champions Cathy Freeman and Ian Thorpe. Together with aid agencies and Indigenous and non-Indigenous health organistions, Close the Gap is calling on all Australians to pressure the Government to commit to raising Aborginal life expectancy
You can be part of the campaign by signing a special online pledge that calls on Australian governments to take action to achieve health equality for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders within 25 years.
To sign the pledge and to find out more about the campaign, head to www.oxfam.org.au
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