Thousands of mostly masked demonstrators marched peacefully in several Australian cities Tuesday in protests demanding a change of date for the "Australia Day" national holiday, per multiple reports.
Why it matters: Aboriginal people call the occasion "Invasion Day" as it's held on the anniversary of the 1788 arrival of the British in Australia. Five people were arrested at a Sydney protest for breaching COVID-19 rules by holding an unauthorized protest, police said. In Melbourne, a supporter of the far-right Proud Boys group was arrested while staging a counter-protest, per the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
More than a thousand people marched to Parliament House this morning... I’ll have the full story at 5:30pm Nine News Local. @9NewsCanberra pic.twitter.com/1nyepfm4NP
— Jack Hahn (@Jack_Hahn9) January 26, 2021
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