Why did Aboriginal activists organize a Day of Mourning on January 26, 1938?

Aboriginal activists organized the Day of Mourning on January 26, 1938, as a direct response to the official celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of the British arrival in Australia.1

While the government and many settlers viewed the date as the founding of a new nation, Indigenous leaders—including William Cooper, William Ferguson, and Jack Patten—used the demonstration to highlight the devastating impact that European settlement had on Indigenous peoples. By declaring the day one of mourning rather than celebration, these activists sought to bring national attention to the systemic dispossession, loss of land, and the damaging effects of colonial policies on Aboriginal communities. This protest was a pivotal moment in the fight for civil rights, as it challenged the national narrative of the holiday and demanded greater recognition of the continent's original inhabitants.21