NAIDOC Week 2026: 50 years of Deadly
National NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia in the first week of July each year (Sunday 5 July to Sunday 12 July), to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
In 2026, NAIDOC Week marked a powerful milestone: 50 years of Deadly, celebrating five decades of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, leadership, and resilience and reflecting on five decades of survival, resistance, creativity, and pride within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
This year, CMY staff took action to agree to ‘Change the Date Ourselves’ again. Staff who signed an individual agreement observed the Friday of NAIDOC week, July 10, as a public holiday in lieu of January 26.
For CMY Social Media & Content Officer Persephone Waxman, who signed the individual agreement and took part in the NAIDOC Week march, changing the date was a meaningful way to demonstrate unity with First Nations people.
‘Changing the date ourselves is an important step in showing solidarity with First Nations people. January 26 is not a date I can ethically celebrate. But the NAIDOC Week march is something I can celebrate.
Persephone Waxman, Social Media & Content Officer, CMY
Being able to take the whole day to march with other allies, engage with First Nations speakers and show my support for First Nations people is a much better option for me.’
Many CMY staff, including members of our Reconciliation Action Group, walked from the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service building to Parliament to Federation Square in solidarity with First Nations people and their allies
As the march began, the atmosphere was palpable. Smoke from the Smoking Ceremony drifted through the air as people gathered, with the young and the old from all walks of life coming together on the unceded lands of the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong peoples.
Threaded through the day – which was filled with music, dance and speeches – was a strong sense of continuity. A reminder that the march was part of a long story of culture, resistance and resilience stretching back more than 65,000 years.
For CMY, participating in NAIDOC Week is one way staff can reflect on the history and ongoing experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, acknowledge that Sovereignty was never ceded, and consider the actions we can take toward reconciliation.