11/07/2025
Beyond Reconciliation: Inside the Sovereign Union’s Call for a Sovereign Future
By: Aussie News Tonight - May 3, 2025
In a country still grappling with its colonial legacy, few voices cut through the noise with as much clarity—and controversy—as the Sovereign Union of First Nations and Peoples in Australia.
Founded by Ghillar Michael Anderson, a respected Aboriginal activist and one of the last surviving founders of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy, the Sovereign Union uses its page as a digital pulpit for a radical political agenda: the dismantling of the Australian state’s authority over First Nations peoples and the establishment of sovereign Indigenous nations.
What emerges from a detailed analysis of the page is a deeply committed political movement grounded in historical grievance, legal argumentation, and decolonial ideology. But critics argue that some of the rhetoric walks a fine line between resistance and racial hostility—and is contributing to a nation more divided than ever.
The Message: Decolonisation, Not Recognition
From post to post, the message is unflinching: the Australian government is illegitimate. The constitution is a colonial document. And reconciliation is meaningless without sovereignty.
The page regularly rejects constitutional recognition or parliamentary advisory bodies like the now-defeated Voice to Parliament, calling them “traps of co-optation” designed to pacify rather than empower. One post from 2023 read:
“Our people will never be free by begging the thief for permission. We are not stakeholders—we are sovereigns.”
This language resonates with many who feel left out of mainstream debates. But it's also stirred controversy.
A Radical Rejection of Colonial Australia
The Sovereign Union’s tone has hardened in recent years. Posts frequently refer to non-Indigenous Australians as “settler colonisers,” “occupiers,” or “invaders.” While these terms are part of decolonial academic language, the tone is confrontational.
In one post responding to ANZAC Day commemorations, the page wrote:
“Australians mourn soldiers who fought in wars overseas while ignoring the war that was—and still is—waged here. Lest We Forget the Invasion of 1788.”
In another post, the Union accused “white Australia” of “genocidal silence” over Indigenous deaths in custody. The post was captioned:
“They call it democracy. We call it domination.”
While the Sovereign Union rarely targets individuals by race, its language about “white systems,” “colonial settlers,” and “invader culture” can be read by some as racially antagonistic—particularly when paired with calls to dismantle current state institutions.
Critics Say: Dividing a Nation That Needs Healing
While the page calls for justice, many Australians say it is sowing deeper divisions in a country that’s already fractured over Indigenous affairs.
“Their language is not about coexistence,” said independent MP Tanya Green. “It’s about separation, dismantling, and ultimately exclusion. At a time when Australia needs healing and unity, this rhetoric is pulling us apart.”
A recent poll conducted after the failed Voice referendum found that over 60% of Australians felt “less hopeful” about Indigenous reconciliation. Analysts argue that polarising messages—both from the far-right and radical activist groups—are to blame.
Social media expert Prof. Daniel Cripps from Monash University noted:
“The Sovereign Union taps into genuine historical grievances. But when all non-Indigenous Australians are lumped together as ‘occupiers’ or ‘invaders,’ it risks alienating potential allies and inflaming racial tensions.”
Indeed, several of the Union’s posts discourage collaboration with non-Indigenous Australians altogether. One 2024 post stated:
“We don’t need allies who want to save us. We need settlers to get out of the way.”
Such messaging has drawn both support and fierce condemnation online—adding fuel to an already volatile national debate.
Supporters Respond: 'You Cannot Heal Without Truth'
Defenders of the Sovereign Union reject accusations of division. They argue that what the group is doing is not divisive—it's truthful.
“You cannot build unity on denial,” said Wiradjuri lawyer and academic Leanne H., who regularly shares the Union’s posts. “If hearing the truth divides us, maybe we weren’t united in the first place.”
Many Indigenous followers express gratitude for the group’s no-compromise tone, especially in the wake of what they call repeated failures of symbolic gestures and government-backed initiatives.
Mobilising Offline: From Facebook to the Frontlines
The page isn't just a space for rhetoric. It promotes real-world actions—sovereignty camps, legal seminars, treaty discussions, and direct action events. Many of these events explicitly reject police presence or government collaboration, marking a divide between grassroots activists and those working within official channels.
In 2024, a post urged followers to boycott NAIDOC events hosted by councils, saying:
“NAIDOC is not for sellouts in suits. It’s for warriors in the struggle. Reclaim our power, not their platforms.”
Conclusion: A Movement at a Crossroads
The Sovereign Union’s Facebook presence is a vivid example of decolonial resistance in Australia—at times provocative, always political, and intentionally unsettling to mainstream narratives.
Whether viewed as a powerful voice of truth or a source of racial division depends largely on perspective. For some, it’s a breath of fresh air in a sanitized debate. For others, it’s a wedge driving Australians further apart.
But one thing remains certain: the Sovereign Union is not here to ask for unity at the expense of justice. It is here to demand justice, even if it fractures the nation in the process
