The federal Race Discrimination Commissioner has made a case for not celebrating January 26, as we are "all on stolen land".
Giridharan Sivaraman made the comments on an SBS podcast alongside Reconciliation Australia CEO Karen Mundine and journalist John Paul Janke.
"When it comes to January 26, it becomes so difficult, because there's this undercurrent of nationalism - love it or leave it phenomenon - where people go, well 'unless you're with us, you're against us', and so you've just got to, on January 26, you've got to kiss the flag... or go away," Mr Sivaraman said.
"January 26 is such a conflicted day ... I feel very, very conflicted when I think about January 26 because I think, well, what are we celebrating? We're all on stolen land and we actually need truth-telling about the history of this land.
"We want systems and institutions to reflect us, to be safe for us. Why don't they do that? Because they were built to really privilege colonialism and whiteness. And why were they built to do that? Because they were to cover a lie - the lie that no one was here before."
Mr Sivaraman told The Saturday Telegraph he backed changing the date of Australia Day, suggesting it has been co-opted by "white supremacists".
"It is a day when colonisation began which led to First Peoples being forced off their country and on to missions and reserves, genocidal acts, massacres, systematic child removal and more," he said.
"If our goal is to have a harmonious society - it would be a mark of respect to accept this is not a day to celebrate and choose a day that is less divisive.
"It is appropriate for the Race Discrimination Commissioner to talk about the dispossession of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders of their land ... it is also appropriate to talk about nationalism, like white supremacists who have used Australia Day as a platform for racism and racist hate."
This year the anti-immigration 'March for Australia' was held on January 26.
On the same day, an attempted terror attack targeted the Invasion Day rally in Boorloo / Perth; with a bomb - which failed to explode - thrown into a crowd of 2,500 people, including children and Elders.
