Last night GetUp members from Cairns joined the live launch of the 2022 election campaign in the seat of Leichhardt. We held real conversations with the community on Yirrganydji land about how together we're going to shift power, engage voters and put people back into politics by platforming local voices and centring First Nations justice, inequality and climate action.
During this election GetUp will be building electoral power for First Nations people and growing our movement for First Nations justice. We will win stronger policies on our issues, including cultural heritage, housing and health equity, elect candidates who are the most progressive on our issues and increase representation of First Nations people in Parliament.
Speaking live from the event in Cairns, GetUp’s First Nations Justice Campaign Director and Election Co-Director Larissa Baldwin said:
“The pandemic has exacerbated the issues our Far North Queensland communities have been facing for decades. From bungling the vaccine rollout, forcing Aboriginal communities into endless lockdowns with no support, to giving public money to climate-wrecking fossil fuel giants to destroy cultural heritage sites and bleach the Great Barrier Reef – the Morrison Government has delivered nothing but empty promises.
“We’re here with the community tonight to come together, making plans to cut through the spin and drive real change in our seat of Leichhardt.
“People are fired up, they’re sick of being ignored and they’re eager to do whatever it takes to empower folks to vote for a Parliament that listens to them.”
With the federal election possibly just eight weeks away, the more people who join us, the more we can use this election to shape the future we all share.