Imagine you are exploring Sydney, Australia, in the year 1964. The cool breeze of May hits your face as you hear the chants of protest in the distance. You follow the noise to see 2,000 university students protesting in solidarity for the Civil Rights Movement in the United States, marching from Hyde Park to the US Consulate. This demonstration, known as the Common Day Protest, would spark a public debate about civil rights and how it relates to Australia.While young Australian citizens were advocating for the rights of people in the United States, were they also advocating for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rights in Australia? These conversations would inspire a group of students to seek the truth and advocate for change.
Student Action for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
In the 1960s, students criticized the Australian government’s policies. They argued that the policies discriminated against people because of their race.
In 1964, students from the University of Sydney created the Student Action for Aborigines (SAFA) to bring public awareness to racial discrimination. The students wanted to spark change and break down unjust systems. SAFA outlined three main objectives:
1. To arouse public attention to the fundamental First Nations problems in health, education, housing, etc.
2. To break down social discriminatory barriers to the extent possible by student action.
3. To stimulate the interest in First Nations themselves in resisting discrimination.
Charles Perkins Leads the Way
Charles Perkins, one of the organization’s founders, spent much of his childhood on a reserve in Alice Springs, Australia. During this time, state governments in Australia had policies known as “protection” and “assimilation” policies. These policies sought to erase Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and create one white Australian culture. The government tried to assimilate those of mixed descent into a “white” society. It also moved the rest of the First Nations population to lands called reserves. Life on the reserves meant curfews, low wages, and poor living conditions. Many children were forced to go to schools away from their families. As a Kalkadoon and Arrente man, Perkin’s own experiences growing up under these policies would leave a lasting effect.
In his autobiography, Perkins wrote:
I was cut right off from the tribal life, and this was always done deliberately by the Administration: “You are no longer an [Aboriginal person]. You are now a white person. You’re always going to be that way.”
The system divided families and cut Perkins off from his culture and traditions. Perkins decided to go to the University of Sydney after a successful athletic career in football (soccer). Perkins was the first Aboriginal Australian to attend university. While he was a student, he would help lead students on a tour of New South Wales to show them the discrimination and living conditions of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia. This tour would be known as The Freedom Ride. It was inspired by the civil activists known as the Freedom Riders in the United States in 1961.
The Freedom Ride Begins
It was a warm Saturday night in February. Around 35 people, the majority being part of the SAFA, boarded a bus for the 15-day journey. The goal of the Freedom Ride was to learn more about what life was like for the First Peoples in New South Wales and to picket against evidence of racism. The Freedoms Riders, as they were called, wanted to bring media attention to the cause and inspire change. Perkins recalled, “Well, we hired the bus. We placed a banner along the front and prepared to start off from Sydney.”
By the second day, the Freedom Riders had already witnessed poor living conditions and signs of segregation. Now, in the town of Walgett, the Freedom Riders had also gained the attention of the local media. Walgett was on the border between the Wayilwan and Gamilaraay people. News got out that the Freedom Riders were going to picket the RSL (Returned and Services League of Australia). RSL was created to help people who had served in the Australian Defence Force. Many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men had fought in World War II and had been welcomed by RSL. In 1965, however, the Freedom Riders found evidence of segregation at Walgett’s RSL.
That night, on their way out of Walgett, a stream of cars tried to force the bus off the road! This scary encounter was broadcasted on national news thanks to a few reporters who had joined the Freedom Ride. While Australians watched the incident on their television screens, newspapers like The New York Times picked up the story too. No one who heard the news could deny that racism did indeed exist in the country.
Experiencing a frightening moment like that could tempt someone to call it off and go home, but the Freedom Riders continued on their journey to the next town of Moree.
Let the Kids in for a Swim
The plan was to picket at Morre, the home of the Gamilaraay people. In this town, First Nations children were banned from the community pool at certain times. The Freedom Riders wanted to bring attention to the fact that Aboriginal people were not allowed to use the town’s facilities. Ann Curthoy, one of the Freedom Riders, wrote about what happened next:
We went back to the hall, had tea, and then went off to the Memorial Hall for the public meeting we’d arranged. There were over 200 people there and at first the atmosphere was very hostile, with lots of jeering and interjection. Jim Spigelman spoke first, about who we were and how we came to be there. Then John Powles, on the survey. Then Charlie… Then a Mr. Kelly got up and moved that the clause in the statute books about segregation in the swimming pool be removed. This was seconded by Bob Brown, and accepted 88 votes to 10. We were all thrilled to bits.
Three days later, when the Freedom Riders returned to Morre, they would be met with hostility. The First Nations children were still being banned from the pool! The Freedom Riders began to protest. “Nobody gets through unless we get through with all the Aboriginal kids!” said Perkins. A mob of people became violent toward the group. With the pressure from the media and the crowd, the mayor of Morre agreed to end segregation in the swimming pool. Here is what Perkins had to say about the breakthrough:
They let the kids in for a swim and we went in with them. We had broken the ban! Everybody came in! We saw the kids into the pool first and we had a swim with them. The Aboriginal kids had broken the ban for the first time in the history of Moree.
The protest had made the 11 o’clock news, and the racism toward the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia was continually becoming known throughout the world. The media spread the word far and wide and pressured the local and national government to enact change. For many years, Indigenous Australians had been fighting for change. The Freedom Riders would inspire more campaigns for equality of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Building a More Equal Australia
In 1967, Australian citizens voted to change the Constitution. This accomplished two major things. First, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people of Australia would finally be included in the census as part of the Australian population (though this was not the same as citizenship).
Second, the Commonwealth, rather than the states alone, was allowed to make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. This was thanks to the protests of Indigenous Australians. The Freedom Ride and the continued activism from young people helped to bring more attention to their cause. There is still more to be done regarding the equality of Indigenous peoples to this day. But remembering the efforts of Perkins and the Freedom Riders is important as people continue to advocate with and listen to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, the First Peoples of Australia.