“Unfinished business”: Karla Grant on the legacy of Corroboree 2000

The image of a packed Harbour Bridge remains one of the most iconic and unifying moments in Australian history. The walk was part of a two-day event, opening with a gathering of Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous leaders at the Sydney Opera House.

Karla Grant was a producer on the SBS coverage of the landmark event. We caught up with Karla during Reconciliation Week to discuss the experience of reporting on such a historical moment, and what progress still needs to be made.

You’ve covered some of the most defining moments in First Nations history on Living Black. What does the 25th anniversary of Corroboree 2000 mean to you personally, and what did you learn from revisiting it in this special episode?

It was a momentous occasion. I worked on Corroboree 2000 as a producer on the SBS coverage because we were the host broadcaster, and I also walked across the bridge with my family. Personally, it’s a special moment and also professionally, it was a historic occasion. It was an incredible day.

I can hardly believe that it was 25 years ago. Looking back at it, it was a day of optimism. Everyone was so excited to be there, and everyone was walking in solidarity for reconciliation. I think everyone had high hopes about what could come of that day – the walk and that whole movement.

What did I learn? A lot, really. It was a huge movement. It still today remains the largest political demonstration in Australia’s history. I knew it was big at the time, but now, reflecting back on it, I didn’t realise just how big it was.

Looking back, I didn’t realise how hard our Elders had it at the time – the people that fought so hard to get to that point – like Patrick Dodson and Evelyn Scott. It was a challenging time for them because it was during the time of a Howard Government. We had 11 years under former Prime Minister John Howard and he refused to say “sorry” – refused to apologise to the Stolen Generations. He was in denial about Australia’s history. So, as we look at this episode, we see that it was a time of refusal and denial – to say “sorry” about Australia’s dark past. I learnt a lot about that during the making of this episode.

Linda Burney [former ALP politician] was very young at the time and has been front and centre of the reconciliation movement. We also spoke to Auntie Ali Golding and a number of people who were there on the day, including Karen Mundine, who is now the CEO of Reconciliation Australia.

What stood out to you in the conversations with those who walked across the Harbour Bridge in 2000? How have their perspectives on reconciliation evolved over the past 25 years?

I learnt from those conversations that it was a challenging time, but people were also very optimistic – like Linda Burney, for example.

She didn’t expect there would be over 250,000 people walking across the Sydney Harbour Bridge. She said in her recent Living Black interview that she spoke with the head of the police in 2000, and they called her and said, “We’ve got all of these people. There’s so many people yet to walk across the bridge.” And she said, “Can you keep it closed?” And so they did. They just didn’t expect to see so many people, but there was so much optimism and participation on the day.

It was a wonderful day where black and white people came together to walk across the Harbour Bridge in solidarity for reconciliation and to fight for justice and equal rights for First Nations peoples.

People were initially optimistic, but also, they were very disappointed because of the actions of John Howard. I think it really hit them hard – to go from optimism to disappointment because Howard wasn’t going to move from his position of refusing to say “sorry”. He denied our history.

And so, speaking to someone like Linda Burney, how have her perspectives on reconciliation evolved since 2000?

Linda was saying that reconciliation isn’t a destination, it’s a journey, and it continues. She’s very hopeful for the future. There are others that we spoke to as well who are very hopeful despite the challenges that we’ve faced over the years. They still remain hopeful, and they still have faith that things are going to improve for First Nations peoples.

Do you feel like the spirit of Corroboree 2000 is still alive in 2025? Where do you think we’ve made progress, or where are we still falling short?

Corroboree 2000 was huge. The spirit, optimism and hope that was there on that day is something that’ll remain unmatched. I don’t think we’ll see that again in our lifetime. It was a historic day and a momentous occasion, and it’ll take something very special for that to happen again. But the spirit of reconciliation isn’t lost. People are still hopeful.

Reconciliation Australia is doing so much to continue that work that was started in the 90s under the Keating Government when he set up, I’m at the Council for original reconciliation. The 90s was a decade of reconciliation, not just here in Australia, but globally as well.

The 90s was a decade of reconciliation, where we saw the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission being set up, and this was happening all over the world where governments were addressing injustices. For First Australians, the 90s was a time of celebration where we saw things like the Mabo Decision. And Paul Keating gave his famous Redfern Speech as well. He admitted that it was the colonisers who took the children away, who smashed our traditional way of life, and he took responsibility for the past wrongs.

But then, after Paul Keating lost the election and John Howard took office, it was a very tough time. It was a dark time, really, for Indigenous affairs. Even though those things happened, I think there’s still hope, enthusiasm and optimism for the future, despite the fact that First Nations peoples are still the most disadvantaged people in our society.

Did you want to specifically call out where you think we’re falling short?

We’re falling short on everything. I know it’s a bit of a cliché, but there is still a long way to go. The title of this episode tonight is Unfinished Business. And there is a lot of unfinished business in this country that needs to be addressed. Kids are still being taken away and put into out-of-home care at high rates. Indigenous peoples are still the most incarcerated people on the planet. People are still dying in custody. Kids are being locked up in detention at high rates, and the prisons are full of Aboriginal kids.

I could go on and on about all the statistics and all the things that need to be addressed. We’ve got the Labor Government that have just been re-elected. I think First Nations peoples really want to see leadership from Anthony Albanese. Since the failure of the referendum in 2023, we really haven’t heard anything about where to next and what’s going to happen next in a post-referendum world.

Is the re-elected Labor Government going to take up the other key areas of the Uluru Statement? Are they going to continue with truth-telling? Are they going to put forward a treaty? What are we going to see? We just don’t know. There’s been this great silence.

I think there really needs to be leadership from our political leaders in this country. They need to step up, and we need to see that from the re-elected Labor Government. And our First Nations leaders too – Pat Turner and others – they’re going to be holding the government to account. That’s something that we do in our work as well.

Because currently, it’s just not good enough. There’s unfinished business that needs to be addressed.

This season of Living Black focuses on Black excellence, women and community. Why was it important to centre women’s voices in this season, and how do their stories reflect the broader state of reconciliation in Australia today?

Aboriginal women play a huge role in our communities. They are the backbone of our communities. That’s just a fact, and that’s always been that way. They are front and centre in decision-making in this country when it comes to First Nations issues, and we’re seeing more and more Indigenous women in politics. It was really important to speak to those female politicians.

First Nations women are doing great work in lots of different areas, and it’s really important to support them, to highlight the invaluable work that they’re doing, and the huge contributions that they make to our community.

Karla Grant is a Western Arrernte woman and a Walkley Award-winning host and Executive Producer of Living Black, the longest-running Indigenous current affairs program on Australian television. Living Black’s special Reconciliation Week episode, Unfinished Business, is available to stream free on SBS On Demand now.