Albury-Wodonga's First Nations on the Voice and its future forward

That's the view of Wiradjuri elder Liz Heta, who has spoken in favour of the proposed constitutional change.

The 2023 referendum will ask Australians whether to recognise First Nations people in the constitution through a Voice to Parliament with voting taking place on Saturday, October 14.

"The government will listen," she said.

"It's an important factor of a way forward; it will take time to normalise, but it's a time for us to reflect and improve."

More than 30,000 Border residents have already voted since early voting booths opened on October 2.

Many support the change, while others think it won't do anything to recognise Indigenous people and restore their rights. Some believe it should have happened years ago.

Mrs Heta said the past few months since the proposal had been confusing, "not really understanding what the Voice meant".

"Even though there's a lot of talk out there around the Voice, people still didn't understand that when we're talking about Aboriginal people, we should be including us in that discussion," she said.

"The government's trying to set up a platform where the Voice sets the next stage, and how it will run will be decided amongst the people."

Mrs Heta said it was about self-determination and empowerment.

"The confusion was that if the Voice came in, are we going to give all the power to Aboriginal people?"

Mrs Heta said there was a lot of misunderstanding and uncertainty, noting that this wasn't the first time Indigenous people had platforms to the government.

"But another government would come along and pull it apart," she said.

"My personal opinion is that it's in the constitution. It's up to us to get it right.

"And it's up to us to stand firm and united.

"We've got to think of our education, our health, our mental health and well-being, our high rates of incarceration, our high rates of suicide - they're all matters that need to be brought up and concentrated on."

Mrs Heta said some people felt it might stop progress on other issues, such as a treaty with Indigenous people or sovereignty.

"But once it's in the constitution, I believe no government can pull it apart again. It can only be a Voice that sits up there and works at it until they get it right."

Mrs Heta said it was "brave" people who "look at themselves and say, 'this is what I'm voting and the why behind it'.

"It takes humility," she said. "People may still choose to say no, and that's their right, but I hope that yes gets through."

It was a similar story for Wiradjuri elder Uncle Ken 'Tunny' Murray who also favoured the Voice.

"There's a million people who have voted no, but there's no sense to it at all," he said.

"It doesn't do anything for us Aboriginals; all it's doing is splitting the white and black community."

Uncle Tunny said there had been "too many broken promises" over the years, and "I'll be glad when it's all over because it drives you crazy."

"We need the government to recognise who we are," he said.

"If nothing changes now, what happens in the next 40 to 50 years? It'll be the same.

"That's what the yes vote is about, working together."

He said it was simple "you don't need a college education to understand what that means".

"I got no education; I know what the yes vote means, but when I read the no vote - it's complicated," he said.

"The no vote, it's racist."

Gunditjmara man Tim Church said it was the "constant let down from the government", which was why he had chosen to vote no.

"I think we've continuously come to the table, but we're continuously ignored at the same time," he said.

"We continue getting bread crumbs and fighting over them."

Mr Church said he couldn't see how the Voice would represent Indigenous peoples on a big scale.

"How will it work? How's it going to be for us all? We're a country of many Aboriginal nations, languages and laws.

"We're so fractured within each community, ourselves, and with each other, and we need to stop going to the government for help with issues they've caused and mend our own first.

"The government sure do like to paint a pretty picture of our mobs, but we're very fractured."

Mr Church said it was time "Aboriginal people took care of their affairs".

"Like the great Bob Marley said, 'we've got to emancipate ourselves from mental slavery'," he said.

"My honest opinion is if they wanted it to happen, they could have easily just made it happen long ago."

Mr Church argued the Voice would be "powerless".

Meanwhile, Ngarrindjeri elder Aunty Pam Griffin pointed out the referendum was a positive step in the right direction.

"It'll just be a never-ending roller coaster of devastation," she said of the Voice if it didn't pass.

"So many people across Australia are suffering badly.

"We have to stand up for them and cross our fingers for it to be the right decision."

Aunty Pam said that inter-generational pain had pushed her to continue to be motivated to make change, "but we all carry it".

"I've lived through the urban experience of racism, poverty and desperation and to this day, I have continued to live through the devastation and pain from my past and my mother's past, but now I am turning it into a positive, and its made me strong.

"It's not a feather in my cap; it's a commitment. "

She said people who voted no came from a place of ignorance.

"There's that underlying racial attitude," she said.

Aunty Pam said she would no longer allow how easily her people were stereotyped.

"People see an old drunken fellow on the street or domestic violence in the community - but that's not all of us; that's a sector, and it continues to happen because of the loss of country, loss of culture, loss of identity, and it might look ugly to the broader community, but on the other hand, we're standing up.

"We're educating ourselves and fighting.

"My family and I have been trying to justify ourselves all our life, but I no longer will justify.

"I want people to justify to me."

To read more stories, download The Border Mail news app in the Apple Store or Google Play.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:

FacebookTwitterWhatsappEmail