National Sorry Day, held annually since 1988, commemorates the mistreatment of the country's Indigenous population.

Mr Carroll, an Indigenous actor whose mother grew up in Darlington Point, said this year is particularly special as it represents three key anniversaries.

50^th anniversary –  1967 referendum in which Australians voted  to amend the constitution to include Aboriginal people in the census and allow the Commonwealth to create laws for them.

25^th anniversary – 1992 Mabo case, which recognised the land rights of the Meriam people, traditional owners of the Murray Islands (which include the islands of Mer, Dauer and Waier) in the Torres Strait.

20^th anniversary – 1997 Bringing Them Home report, when Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (now the Australian Human Rights Commission) released its report on the forced separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families. 

National Sorry Day commemorations will occur across the country. The Ted Scobie event, which is brought to us by Griffith Aboriginal Medical Services in partnership with Griffith City Council, will commence at 9.30am. Mr Carroll will be addressing the crowd, along with other guest speakers, and they’ll be a free BBQ lunch.

Mr Carroll said the legacy of the stolen generation continues to have a major impact on today’s Indigenous families. 

“You can only imagine what it’s like to be removed from your family,” he said. 

Mr Carroll recounted the experience of his mother’s cousin, who was removed from his family as a baby, and not told anything about them. He reconnected when he was in his 40s, by which time his mother had passed away. 

“We also see so many Aboriginal children removed from their families even today,” Luke said. 

There are around 16,000 Indigenous children living in out of home care across Australia.

Mr Carroll said there are cases when an Aboriginal child does need to be removed from their family due to abuse or neglect.

“When that happens, every effort should be made to place them in kinship case with their extended families.”  

Mr Carroll rose to national prominence in 2002, where he had a leading role in the film Australian Rules

He is currently working in theatre performances, but you can see him on Sydney Weekender at 530pm Sundays on the Channel Seven.