Indigenous Australian Activism in 1974

Posted 18 Feb 2022Fri 18 Feb 2022 at 4:13am

Indigenous Australian activist Sam Watson — Indigenous Australian Activism in 1974

A man being interviewed.

MAN: Neville has always suggested that we work within the system and use the system to achieve our aims or our reforms, and a lot of younger Blacks aren't prepared to wear that.

MAN: Now, particularly with the establishment of the Black Embassy in Canberra in '72, that illustrated a whole new concept in the Black Movement, black nationalism — the complete destruction of tribal and cultural and State boundaries. So you had black people relating to each other across Australia. Now, this injected a whole new movement, a whole new feeling into the black movement, and the basis of that was land rights, OK?

MAN: So, we thought that through demonstrations through the media of that black tent, we'd be able to get land rights, OK? We were a wee bit wrong. Maybe we should have used violent demonstration, maybe we should have used other means of demonstration.

MAN: Neville came out and said, 'Give it a miss. Don't use the tents. Get behind me. And we'll exchange ideas and use party politics to achieve your end.' OK. So, we said, 'No. We've had enough of that. You older people are cool, you've been through the whole bit. We're just coming into it. We've reacted differently to you because times have changed, etc. So, we're going to do it our way.' Now, our way didn't work. The Liberal Country Party gave us nothing. In '72, the Labor Party was elected into power. They gave us nothing. So we've just got nowhere to turn. It's either we've just got to think off a… The aims are going to remain the same, but it's just going to be media of achieving them.

MAN: Now, Neville still maintains his way is best, of achieving them through the system. Now, who knows, maybe just talk a lot of people around, maybe if we do get land rights through the present government, or through the next government, whichever way it goes, then a lot of young blacks will sit back and think, 'That's the best way.' Maybe we should go back to school and get our Senior and go to university level and then work within in the system and attempt reform that way. It's just a hard thing to say, you know.

MAN: If Neville does manage to get this land rights motion through the Senate, then undoubtedly, that'll be the greatest thing that's happened to blacks since 1770.

SUBJECTS: Civics and Citizenship, History

YEARS: 9–10

For generations, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have sought to regain custodianship of the land taken from them since the arrival of Europeans in Australia.

In the early 1970s, protests and demonstrations signified the beginning of the Land Rights movement.

In this clip, Indigenous Australian activist Sam Watson highlights the different approaches of the younger generation of protesters and Senator Neville Bonner, Australia's first Aboriginal member of parliament.

Things to think about

1.Have you ever protested about an issue you believed in? What is the role of a mass protest such as a street march or sit-in? How does the role of those protesting in the streets differ from the role of politicians who are fighting to influence the same issue?
2.Sam Watson identifies Senator Neville Bonner as a believer in working 'within the system'. How did this approach differ from that of the young activists at the time? How much influence did the protests of the young have on land rights reform up until this point? According to Sam Watson, how might the strategies of future activists be influenced if land rights reform is achieved within the political system?
3.Do you think that Sam Watson believed that Senator Bonner could achieve land rights reform? What words and phrases influence your response? Senator Neville Bonner worked within the system in an attempt to achieve land rights reform. Do you believe this makes him as much of an 'activist' as the young protesters described in this clip?
4.Search for appropriate resources on the Aboriginal Tent Embassy, which was established in Canberra in 1972. Find answers to these questions: What were the aims of the people who established the Tent Embassy? How was the Embassy generally viewed by the Australian population? Did those who established the Embassy achieve their goals?

Acknowledgements

Image credit: 'NAIDOC week 2011', courtesy DIBP images (Flickr).

Date of broadcast: 1974

Copyright

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Posted 18 Feb 2022Fri 18 Feb 2022 at 4:13am

History Education, Society

Indigenous Australian Activism in 1974

For generations, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have sought to regain custodianship of the land taken from them since the arrival of Europeans in Australia.

Things to think about

Acknowledgements

Copyright

Related

Australia's first Aboriginal member of parliament

Counted: Indigenous Australia today

Four Corners: Balancing opposing views on native title

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Transcript

For generations, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have sought to regain custodianship of the land taken from them since the arrival of Europeans in Australia.

Things to think about

Acknowledgements

Copyright

Australia's first Aboriginal member of parliament

Counted: Indigenous Australia today

Four Corners: Balancing opposing views on native title

Footer