Qantas has released a beautiful new ad that is perfectly timed for the re-opening of Australia. While highly moving, the poignant ad is a sad reminder of what Australians endured during the pandemic, but sounds a note of optimism that those days are over.
Qantas 2022 “I Still Call Australia Home” Ad Campaign: Beautiful, But Also A Difficult Reminder
First, you should watch the ad, which I would label as one of the finest airline ads I’ve ever seen:
It centers around the 1980 “I still call Australia home” anthem, which has taken on a whole new meaning in the pandemic era. It features:
- Kylie Minogue
- Hugh Jackman
- Ash Barty
- Adam Goodes
- Troye Sivan
- Bangarra dancers
- Qantas staff
- Olympians
- The Qantas Choir
Interestingly, the ad was filmed pre-COVID, which seems almost prophetic. The ad includes sights and sounds from:
- Hutt Lagoon, Western Australia
- Cape Raoul, Tasmania
- Melbourne
- Uluru
- Hobart
- Brisbane
- Sydney
- Salt Lakes, South Australia
- Longreach
- The Whitsundays
- Los Angeles
- Tokyo
- London
I could not help but to shed a tear upon seeing a family reunited in the final seconds of the ad.
And perhaps I should leave it at that, but I won’t.
I suppose many Australians will pat themselves on their back and say all of this was worthwhile. Unlike the reckless Americans, we took COVID-19 seriously. In the end, we sacrificed for one another and less than 6,000 people died with COVID-19. Furthermore, by isolating ourselves, our lives were able to go about as normal…we didn’t even have to wear masks within Australia.
And that’s persuasive, though comparing a geographically isolated continent of 25 million people to a country of 330 million at the center of world commerce is quite a stretch.
But the “was it worth it” question does gnaw at me. The draconian limitations on travel and free movement were chilling. Keeping families apart was brutal. The idea of pursuing a zero COVID-19 strategy for so long is still questionable, considering the surge in omicron cases across Australia this week, even as 96% of citizens are fully vaccinated.
I’m very grateful Australia has reopened its borders. I greatly look forward to traveling to Australia again, as I love the beautiful nation, its glowing cities, and the lovely people. Perhaps we will need more time to properly reflect upon the wisdom of Australia’s approach to COVID-19.
But I still find it so hard to process stories like this of people dying alone due to rigid polices that overlooked deep human needs of love and fellowship. Such isolation was not honorable sacrifice, but foolish sacrifice.
> Read More: How United Airlines Helped A Family In Need Enter Heartless Australia
CONCLUSION
Qantas has unveiled a beautiful ad that captures the moment so well and makes me want to get back to Australia as soon as possible. While Australia’s COVID-19 policy will be debated for decades, I do see not only the beauty but also the pain in this ad…and thinking broadly about public policy and our reaction to fear and calamity is always a helpful exercise.
I wonder how ‘all her sons and daughters’ who were locked out of their own country for most of two years feel about this.
I’ll help you finish. “Yes. Correct. For some Australian’s that was their experience. For others, their experience was more aligned with what was you stated.”
“…though comparing a geographically isolated continent of 25 million people to a country of 330 million at the center of world commerce is quite a stretch.”
You acknowledge comparison is a stretch, yet you keep doing it. Let it go champ. Part of the answer as to why countries can approach a problem differently is statement in your own above statement.
You actually don’t need to do any reflection on Australian policies, they really don’t impact on you and we are actually capable of doing it ourselves.
“Furthermore, by isolating ourselves, our lives were able to go about as normal…we didn’t even have to wear masks within Australia.”
for at least part of the pandemic, weren’t Australians not allowed to leave their homes for non-essential activity, and only then they were only permitted to travel within 3-mile radius? outdoor exercise was limited to once daily.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/it-just-feels-surreal-military-posted-checkpoints-australian-state-extends-n1237068
Yes. Correct.
I think Australians had over 80% support of the Covid rules.
I hear Americans complaining how the Aussies did it.
Aussies stood strong and united for the common good while we Americans fought with ourselves over selfish and stupid ideas of who has the better idea, living off of misinformation and conspiracy mostly from people trying to gain the spotlight for themselves at any cost.
I’m not talking about giving up my citizenship but I would be proud if I could call Australia home.
Interestingly I am on a plane and headed there in a few days via a stop in MNL. The clients I am seeing there have all echoed the same thing aside from whether I agree with them or not, “We lost two years of our lives…for what?” They seem especially upset given the Government is now all about, “Let er rip” now.
Interestingly enough most of the Aussie’s I know thought it was worth it. I guess that’s why anecdotal evidence isn’t useful for topics like this.
Anecdotal reflections are not evidence of anything. Just reflections on what we hear in the trenches. Different experience from your end, sure. People can take either of our anecdotal ramblings for whatever they are worth,
I love this parody of the ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J9eyT-f-yc
“But the “was it worth it” question does gnaw at me. The draconian limitations on travel and free movement were chilling. Keeping families apart was brutal. The idea of pursuing a zero COVID-19 strategy for so long is still questionable, considering the surge in omicron cases across Australia this week, even as 96% of citizens are fully vaccinated.”
As a British-Australian who’s family is in the UK (i live in Melbourne) I just wanted to offer my thoughts.
“The idea of pursuing a zero COVID-19 strategy for so long is still questionable”
Until August/September last year, most of the population were unable to get their first vaccine dose due to federal/procurement issues around vaccines and age group eligibilities due to issues with AZ.
The initial rollout for double-vaccinating willing participants wasn’t finished until around October/November last year IIRC. As a mid-late 30s millennial, I got both my doses in September (as a reference point).
I felt that it was a sensible approach for us to buy time with these measures for so long so that as many Australians as possible be afforded a chance at vaccination since we knew they were coming. This assisted the healthcare system so that it wasn’t overwhelmed and helped reduce our death tolls and keep other things like elective surgeries going, and life domestically running more or less as normal, bar lockdowns (oh yes, I remember those).
By the time the initial rollout for under 40s was underway, states had already started to abandon covid-zero, namely NSW and Victoria (around start of September 2021) due to how fast Delta was spreading and how overwhelmed contract tracing was becoming. I don’t see how any suggestion of abandoning covid-zero until we physically were unable to manage it at that point in time would have helped anyone. Especially a largely unvaccinated population.
Yes, it was brutal. Yes, there was a mental health cost-and yes this should have been handled better.
Yes, I missed my family back in the UK and hated being separated from them, but I also witnessed how hard they had it with their own lockdowns, as well as families, friends and neighbours getting sick, some very sick and some dying horrific deaths alone in hospitals overwhelmed by covid waves, not to mention those who had cancer treatments or heart surgeries indefinitely postponed due to the covid burden.
So ”was it worth it”? Absolutely! I imagine we saved countless lives by collectively doing the right thing here, especially for older Australians, those who have disabilities or are immunocompromised who may not do so well, even with two or three doses.
The bigger question I have, which I hope is reflected on later, is “what could we have done better and how do we learn from this?”. Something I don’t think the current federal government has the know-how to do or the political will to acknowledge.
The Australian government should be ashamed of themselves, terrorizing their population in this senseless manner. They will, however, never admit to treating their own population with less respect than stray dogs and blame circumstance before taking responsibility for their actions that went against all human decency, and they will never resign their political positions, less they are forced to.
Qantas love the journey down sentimental lane, especially reminding us of what they have contributed to our country. That’s fine, if not a bit overdone, but what about TAA/Australian? If bigger airlines like BA and AA can embrace and promote their past (BEA, BOAC and TWA, Piedmont respectively) why does QF continue to ignore 45 years of “their” history at every opportunity?
“But the “was it worth it” question does gnaw at me”
Not sure why it’s gnawing at you that much. It seems like something for the Australians themselves to deal with and answer.
Because they took a totally different approach than the USA – an approach that I felt violated fundamental human rights…yet saved tens of thousands, possibly over 100K lives. That tradeoff between life or liberty is such a prescient question and makes the Australia situation relevant to me…and potentially to future U.S. policy.
You look at how fast a hospital or road or airport goes up in China and you have to marvel. Yet at what cost?
You look at how over 800K died with COVID-19 in the USA…and less than 6K in Australia (and even if you divide 330 million by 25 million and multiply it out, you still get an equivalent death rate 1/10 that of the USA.
So I am haunted by the question of whether the US failed to have the will to save lives, which I hold scared (are Americans, as a whole, simply too selfish?) or was the Australian approach simply unworkable because of the U.S. constitution, the geographic location of the USA, and other factors which distinguish the two nations beyond its people?
A LOT of Americans are definitely too selfish…..
You can’t fight Mother Nature, nobody lives forever and those that try to alter these basic facts are destined to fail and drag down everyone else with them. The pseudo Covid pandemic was the worst example of global government overreach, overreaction and denial of personal freedoms ever perpetrated on the general public. History will eventually tell the true story. Democracy is for the people by the people, to benefit the majority, not the minority. We now live in an age when intelligent people are being silenced so stupid people won’t be offended.
“Democracy is for the people by the people, to benefit the majority, not the minority. ”
Every state government in Australia that faced election during the height of restrictions, where most restrictions are done, was re-elected. Including 2 of the states with the toughest borders restrictions.
What a lame video…..
I’m disappointed Brian Johnson (AC/DC) didn’t sing in the video. He would have livened it up a bit.