However, for many First Nations people, myself included, this publicity stunt of a launch is one which is distracting the Australian people from the real issue with our current constitution, and it is not the presence of the Queen.

The lack of recognition and the lack of a voice of our people in our country's founding document, and the disparity this causes between our uniquely sovereign communities and the rest of the country, is the real flaw in our national identity.

First Nations people have long been excluded from the systems and processes of government in this country. The massacres, dispossession, and violence inflicted upon us is well known, and need not be discussed in detail here. We were excluded from the conventions and assemblies which determined our constitution in the lead-up to federation, and we have suffered a history of continued colonial violence and injustice even after federation in 1901.

Even now, in 2022, we have no guaranteed say about the laws and policies which affect us, little to no autonomy for determining the agendas of our own communities, and no voice which is effectively listened to, either by government or Australian society. We, the oldest continuous culture in the world, with unceded sovereignty over this country, have no active place in the political processes of this nation.

That is why the Uluru Statement From the Heart, and its call for a First Nations Voice to Parliament enshrined in the constitution via national referendum, followed by a Makarrata Commission for Treaty and Truth-telling, is so important. It would give us an irrevocable seat at the table on all matters concerning our communities, and a say on the future directions and ambitions we have for our people. It would also fundamentally reshape the essence of Australian political life, and our constitutional democracy.

Not only would Indigenous affairs be taken out of the daily political melee, but it would also mark a moment of change for the relationship between our sovereign First Nations and the Australian state. It would finally deal with the unfinished business of this nation; that of the proper place for our First Nations. And it is this unfinished business which must come before any attempt at a republic.

READ MORE:

As UNSW Professor Megan Davis has written, the issues facing our people, including "disadvantage, the limitations of the right to self-determination for women, child removals [and] the challenges of liberal democratic governance" - are more pressing. Deciding whether our head of state is the Queen or Peter FitzSimons does nothing to solve those problems.

Indeed, if we are to focus on the perceived "problem" of our being a constitutional monarchy, without first addressing the real and fundamental constitutional issues faced by First Nations, then the republic the ARM is striving towards will be no different to the Commonwealth we have now. Same age, same income, same super contributions. And same settler-colonial state, just with a different hat. Or, to quote Professor Davis again, "lipstick on a pig".

I am all for Australia cutting its ties to Britain, and forging a path as a truly independent republic. But not if this is done at the expense of my community, and our push for justice and constitutional reform. We cannot become a newer, more modern, and more inclusive Australia if we first don't address the fatal flaw at the heart of the current Australia. To do that, we must accept the invitation from the Uluru Statement to walk together on a path towards a better future. If the republican movement is determined to press ahead with its own agenda before that goal, then it can count me out.