Merri-bek City Council, formerly Moreland, voted in 2017 to no longer refer to January 26 as Australia Day and supported the call to change the date. In 2023 it moved it's citizenship ceremony from January 26 and instead hosted a "day of mourning" event.
In a conversation with NITV Radio, former Merri-bek mayor Councillor Angelica Panopoulos explained that the decision to change the way January 26 is commemorated was guided by local Aboriginal advisory groups and Wurundjeri Elders.
“This decision to no longer celebrate January 26 was made in 2017 before I was on the council. Back then the majority of the councillors decided that January 26 is not a day to celebrate,” Councillor Angelica Panopoulos said.
Since then, the date is locally referred to as January 26, or Invasion Day or Day of Mourning.
“It is not an inclusive or unifying holiday. It is a day of Black deep loss and trauma for First Nations people.”
After the decision had been made not to celebrate January 26, Merri-bek has been holding mourning ceremonies on January 26 in Coburg outside the Civic Center and in one of the council reserves on Bell Street.
