Political and Moral Stances
For me, reconciliation is not about casting blame, financial compensation or bringing shame on anyone. It is about accepting there have been wrongdoings in the past that have left Aborigines here in a position of distinct disadvantage.
—Bernard Fanning
Fanning has stated that although political messages may be common throughout his and Powderfinger's music, it is not the central focus when writing songs: "A balance has to be struck in a lot of ways, in the sense that primarily I'm a musician. I'm not a political commentator. So if I write a song that has political content, then hopefully that song is a good enough song to make it onto my record. And if it's not, then that's just a song that I've written. So I don't think it necessarily needs to be that you're definitively trying to make a political statement." He has stated that he has no interest in "doing a 'Peter Garrett'", who entered politics after a successful Midnight Oil career.
On 8 July 2007, Fanning wrote a piece for Adelaide's Sunday Mail, telling of his recent trip to Uluru. In the piece, he criticised those who climbed the rock, stating that he was "appalled that kids were being taught to disrespect the wishes of Aboriginal people on their own land". Upon returning from Uluru, Fanning wrote "Black Tears", which intended to "document a relationship gone wrong". In his piece, Fanning also criticised the 17-year life expectancy gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians, and encouraged all to join a conversation on reconciliation.
Fanning takes a left-leaning political stance, although he claims he is not fond of discussing the issue. Rather, he attempts to discuss the issues through his songs; "I approach writing a song about something like the same way I would approach writing a song about a relationship, because it's something that I feel strongly about." However, he has occasionally stated his views on social and political issues, giving The Dominion Post his stance on Aboriginal affairs in light of the Across the Great Divide tour;
| “ | The trial of the policeman that was charged has gone ahead and he was acquitted. In terms of that issue, that's out of the way, but the whole idea of Aboriginal people in custody dying is certainly not out of the way. And Aboriginal people being treated like shit in Australia is certainly not out of the way either. | ” |
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