Leave the hatred behind and embrace Australian citizenship and mateship.
That was the strong message from Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk as he welcomed 582 new citizens - from 65 countries - at a colourful ceremony at City Hall.
He urged those from war-torn or oppressive regimes to leave any sense of hatred behind and make the most of being an Australian citizen.
"We are a country that are built on two very important things - respect for one another and harmony within our community," he said.
"We can only survive if we continue to respect people's rights to have a diversity of beliefs."
The mood was less harmonious outside Queensland Parliament, where hundreds of Aboriginal activists and supporters rallied in an Invasion Day protest.
For them, the national day on January 26 is "Invasion" or "Survival Day" - the "day of killing" that accompanied the landing of the First Fleet 228 years ago.
"Resisting Terrorism since 1788," one large poster read. Others decried the forced removal of children from traditional communities.
In Queensland's far north, Yarrabah mayor Errol Neal said people who celebrated Australia Day didn't seem to appreciate indigenous Australia's struggles.
"It (Australia Day) just seems to be a big, drunk and ignorant party ... It means nothing," he said.
Many Queenslanders celebrated with backyard barbecues or a day at the beach. But many Gold Coast festivities were washed out as pelting rain cleared parks and beaches.
A dampener was also put on celebrations at Palmwoods, on the Sunshine Coast, when Clive Palmer made an appearance and said he had no personal responsibility to ensure his 237 axed Queensland Nickel refinery workers get their entitlements.
The mood was far more charitable at Brisbane's Story Bridge Hotel, where cockroach races raised funds for Youngcare.
MC Damian Burke said the races at the Kangaroo Point establishment had grown in popularity since they began 35 years ago as a way to settle some river rivalry.
"It started in 1982 when someone in Bulimba thought the cockroaches there were faster than the ones at Kangaroo Point," he told AAP.
"So we thought we have to have a race to sort this out."
The annual Australia Day event has since raised more than $500,000 for various charities.
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