You might have noticed that Zee Feed has been quiet on the Voice to Parliament referendum. It’s an intentional decision. We’d tried to start workshopping a couple of pieces back in January, but they all felt flat and something became obvious very quickly: this is a topic where we have to do much more listening than speaking.

Not just Zee Feed, but all of us who are not Indigenous. So that’s what I’ve been doing since the beginning of the year – reading, listening and watching as many different First Nations perspectives on the Voice as possible. Yes, No and otherwise. If I’m being completely honest, I am uncomfortable with eagerly some non-Indigenous progressives are sharing their personal rationale for voting Yes. It is categorically wrong to classify the No vote as ‘racist’ – listening to the Blak ‘No’ perspective (which is not the Coalition-led conservative ‘No’ campaign) has been invaluable. So, as a publication that strives to be truly feminist in its values and operation… how will Zee Feed cover the Voice referendum?

Introducing… POV on the Voice

We’re launching our POV on the Voice content resource on Monday – as a subscriber, you get an early preview right now. It’s a collection of exclusively Indigenous opinions, perspectives and reasonings on the Voice – Yes, No and Undecided. This resource does not and will not include any non-Indigenous opinions. It’s not our place to speak over. On top of that, the ‘No’ perspectives all come from people who are activists, organisers and advocates. These are people who work to improve life for Indigenous folks in Australia, and do not fuck with Pauline Hanson or Peter Dutton. Just to be clear.

POV on the Voice has articles, videos, social posts, podcasts… something for everyone. It’s all been published elsewhere, but we’ve brought them together in one place to make it as comprehensive & convenient as possible. There is value in curation, which is one of Zee Feed’s strengths.

The page on our site will feature a selection of the content, but the full list is actually on a Google sheet lol. This is a six week campaign with a lot more still to be said, so I really wanted it to be a living document. Google Sheets was just easier. We’ll keep adding links & if that ends up being the more shareable resource then so be it!

Alongside the perspectives, the hub also includes:

• Links to official resources and info from the Australian Electoral Commission, government pages and RMIT FactCheck

• Other context that might be helpful, like polling data, discussions about treaty & sovereignty, other explainers. These won’t necessarily be from Indigenous authors or voices

For the sake of transparency: I am voting Yes. I arrived at that decision by listening to Indigenous people, including (maybe even especially) those who are against it – and that’s how you should decide too.

The hub is not officially linked to our homepage or promoted anywhere yet. It’s truly a WIP that I’ll still be tweaking on Sunday, so please keep it under wraps until Monday morning!

– Crystal
Founder & Chief of Everything at Zee Feed
Follow me on Instagram or TikTok

Good stuff on Zee Feed rn:

If you notice any bugs or weird stuff happening, send me an email! CLICK HERE TO SEE.

Smart stuff on the Internet 💭

All the stuff I found on the web that made me think, smile, or have an ‘aha!’ moment. Spend your Sunday reading them – you'll be better off for it:

I Can’t Afford My Friends Anymore on Refinery29
"Socialising is increasingly a luxury, with one study finding that the cost of living crisis has impacted about a third of people's ability to spend time with friends. Another recent study surveyed more than 1,000 people over the age of 18 and found that more than a third of Gen Z and millennials have a friend who pushes them to overspend."

Meet Max Chandler-Mather: the man getting under Anthony Albanese's skin on Canberra Times
Insightful profile on the Greens MP by friend of Zee Feed, Justine Landis-Hanley: "Parliament is largely full of two kinds of people – ideologues who want to change the world, and those who run for office because they want power. Perhaps what makes Chandler-Mather so frustrating – and threatening – to some in this building is that he is neither. And both.”

We’re In the Midst of an Epidemic of Fake Karens on Rolling Stone
MEDIA LITERACY NOW, I BEG! “Back in 2021, for instance, a video of a middle-aged blond woman loudly protesting being seated next to an unvaccinated airline passenger, and subsequently being chastised by a strapping pilot, went viral and was even shared by the right-wing YouTube channel Turning Point USA… The video has its own IMDB entry, and some cast members even posted photos of shooting it on Instagram.”

Remember the CovidLive website by data analyst Anthony Macali that gave us realtime case numbers during the pandemic? He’s also behind new site OnlyFacts.io which brings the same approach to Australia’s emissions & net-zero target data! This is a resource I will be checking regularly.

And lastly, this very pointed TikTok about Oprah’s latest ‘donation’ to ‘help’ Hawaii…

If you found this email thought-provoking, will you share it with a friend? Sharing helps us grow 🌱 and makes you look really smart.