ASHLEY Gordon says he still hears the line that Aboriginal people "should move on and get over it".
But Gordon, the first player signed by the Newcastle Knights, believes Australia has to face up to its history and acknowledge "the ugly facts".
"I was nearly born as flora and fauna. You know, my brother was, you know," Gordon said in an interview for the latest edition of Toohey's News: the Podcast.
"I had a friend who went through school who was in the stolen generation in 1971, the last one. So that's not long ago ... you know, so it's still very close to our heart. And I think people need to realize that it can still impact us. It's about working with us and walking beside us, not in front of us. No-one's more important than the other, but at the end of the day, we do this together."
Gordon 51, who scored 38 tries in 71 games for the Knights between 1989 and 1995 after moving with his family to Newcastle from Brewarrina when he was 10, believes the current focus on the Black Lives Matter rallies across the country is an opportune time for Australia to properly address racism and the plight of disadvantaged indigenous communities.
He also believes a constructive debate around the national anthem, the Constitution and Australia Day to properly acknowledge this country's 'first people' is needed. But at the same time, he claims there needs to be a united front from indigenous figures if voices are to be properly heard.
"There's some conflicting views among us as well," he said. "So I think we, as Aboriginal people, need to get what we want in order to come forward so we can sit at the table with our leaders and politicians and say, well, you know, this is what we think should happen.
"This is what we'd like to see moving forward. So Australia becomes a better place and Aboriginal people aren't disadvantaged."
On the national anthem, Gordon said: "I've seen a few people tweak it. You can change it to add some important things around acknowledging the people that were living here. You know, the people of the first people that were living in Australia needs to be acknowledged and not only the national anthem, but in the constitution.
"You can't ignore the fact that this was already inhabited and no one, no one discovered Australia. It was already discovered. So we need to change that in our history and change it in our anthem. And it's not that hard to do."
He says all of Australia and it's history and not just the First Fleet arrival should be celebrated on national day of celebration.
"We've got to acknowledge the ugly facts that occurred," he said. "You know, the massacres, the killings, how much the population diminished - that's all part of our history. I think we just need to look at how we can make Australia a better place by combating racism and uniting all it's people."
