Reading list: the 1967 Referendum

The 1967 Referendum

Bain Attwood and Andrew Markus, The 1967 Referendum: Race, power and the Australian Constitution, Canberra, Aboriginal Studies Press, 2007

Turning the Tide

Faith Bandler, Turning the Tide: A personal history of the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders, Canberra, Aboriginal Studies Press, 1989

Additionally, the following two books, also published by Aboriginal Studies Press, give interesting background material to the people and organisations involved in the campaign for Indigenous rights.

Thinking Black

Bain Attwood and Andrew Marcus, Thinking Black: William Cooper and Australian Aborigines' League, Canberra, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, 2004

Seeking Racial Justice

Jack Horner, Seeking Racial Justice: an insiders memoir of the movement for Aboriginal advancement, 1938-1978, Canberra, Aboriginal Studies Press, 2004

The following sources are available in the AIATSIS Library. Click on the link to view the catalogue record for each item.

Background books

• Aborigines Advancement League (Victoria), Victims or Victors: The Story of the Aborigines Advancement League, South Yarra, Vic, Hyland House, 1985
• Attwood, Bain, Rights for Aborigines, Crows Nest, N.S.W. : Allen & Unwin, 2003
• Attwood, Bain, and Markus, Andrew, The struggle for Aboriginal rights: a documentary history, NSW, Allen and Unwin, 1999
• Austin, Tony, Never trust a government man: Northern Territory Aboriginal policy 1911-1939, Darwin, NTU Press, 1997
• Bandler, Faith, The time was ripe : a history of the Aboriginal Australia Fellowship (1956-69), Chippendale, NSW : Alternative Publishing Cooperative, 1983
• Chesterman, John, Citizens without rights: Aborigines and Australian citizenship, Melbourne, Cambridge University Press 1997
• Chesterman, John, Civil rights : how Indigenous Australians won formal equality, St Lucia, Qld. : University of Queensland Press, 2005
• Coltheart, Lenore (ed.) Jessie Street : a revised autobiography, Annandale, N.S.W. : Federation Press, 2004
• Darling, Elaine, They spoke out pretty good: politics and gender in the Brisbane Aboriginal rights movement 1958-1962, St Kilda, Vic, Janoan Media Exchange in Australia, 1998
• Elkin, A. P., Citizenship for the Aborigines : a national Aboriginal policy, Sydney Australasian Publishing Company, 1944 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, METS pdf)
• Haebich, Anna, For their own good: Aborigines and Government in the Southwest of Western Australia 1900-1940, Nedlands, University of Western Australia Press, 1988
• Haebich, Anna, Broken Circles: fragmenting Indigenous families 1800-2000, Fremantle, Fremantle Arts Centre Press, 2000
• Horner, Jack, Bill Ferguson : fighter for Aboriginal freedom / a biography by Jack Horner, Dickson, A.C.T.:Jack Horner , 1994
• Kidd, Rosalind, The way we civilise: Aboriginal Affairs – the untold story, St Lucia, Qld, University of Queensland Press, 1997
• Mattingly, Christobel and Hampton, Ken, Survival in our own land : Aboriginal experiences in South Australia since 1836 : told by Nungas and others, Sydney, Hodder and Stoughton, 1992
• Peterson, Nicolas and Sanders, Will, Citizenship and Indigenous Australians: changing conceptions and possibilities, Cambridge, U.K. : Cambridge University Press, 1998
• Rowse, Tim, White flour, white power: from rations to citizenship in Central Australia, Cambridge, UK, Cambridge University Press, 1998
• Thaiday, Willie, Under the Act, Townsville, The NQ Black Publishing Co Ltd, 1981
• Tilbrook, Lois, Nyungar tradition : glimpses of Aborigines of south west Australia 1829-1914, Nedlands, W.A , University of Western Australia Press, 1983 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf)
• West Ida, Pride against prejudice : reminiscences of a Tasmanian Aborigine, North Hobart, Montpelier Press, 2004

Commonwealth Government reports

• Aboriginal Welfare Conference of Commonwealth and State Ministers, V. 1-2, Parliament House, Perth, 21 July 1967, © Commonwealth of Australia. Reproduced by permission. (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf)
• Aboriginal welfare: initial conference of Commonwealth and State Aboriginal authorities held at Canberra, 21-23 April 1937, Canberra, 21-23 April 1937, © Commonwealth of Australia, Commonwealth Government Printer, 1937. Reproduced by permission. (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, METS pdf)
• The policy of assimilation: decisions of Commonwealth and State Ministers at the Native Welfare Conference, Canberra, January 26th and 27th, 1961, Canberra, Commonwealth Government Printer, 1961, © Commonwealth of Australia. Reproduced by permission. (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 613kb)
• Native Welfare Conference, Commonwealth and State Authorities held at Parliament House Canberra 26th – 27th January, 1961. Proceedings and decisions, [Canberra], [1961] © Commonwealth of Australia. Reproduced by permission. (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, METS pdf)

Parliamentary papers

• Constitution Alteration (Aboriginals) Bill 1967, Second Reading [and third Reading] in Hansard, Vol H of R 54, p. 263-287, © Commonwealth of Australia, (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, 1.79MB pdf)
• Aboriginals – Government policy, in Hansard, Vol. H of R 56, p. 972-981, © Commonwealth of Australia, (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, 912KB pdf)

Articles

• Mahon, Hugh, The Native Races Under the New Constitution, in ‘The Austral Light’, March 1, 1902, p. 198-201 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 595kb)
• Maynard, John, Fred Maynard and the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association (AAPA): one God, one aim, one destiny, in ‘Aboriginal History’, Vol. 21, (1997), p.[1]-13 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 1114kb)
• Paisley, Fiona, Federalising the Aborigines? : constitutional reform in the late 1920s , in Australian Historical Studies, Vol. 29, no. 111 (Oct 1998), p. 248-266 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 1499kb)
• Patten, Jack, Our ten points, in ‘The Australian Abo Call’, No. 1, April 1938, p. 1 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 1029kb)
• Patten, Jack, To all Aborigines, in ‘The Australian Abo Call’, No. 1, April 1938, p. 1 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 1029kb)
• Our Historic Day of Mourning and Protest: Aborigines Conference, held at Australian Hall, 26th January. 1938: Report of Proceedings, in ‘The Australian Abo Call’, No. 1 April 1938, p. 2 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 392kb)
• Calling all Aborigines: Straight Talk, by the Editor,'The Australian Abo Call', No. 3 June 1938, p. 1 [transcript online at http://www.reasoninrevolt.net.au/pdf/a000225.pdf ] (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 813kb)
• Appeal to Parliament: New laws needed! “We are not sinners, savages, and criminals”, by the Editor in ‘The Australian Abo Call’, No. 4, July 1938, p. 1 [transcript online ] (Digitised by AIATSIS Library, pdf 830kb)

Manuscripts in our collection

• Maynard, John, Fred Maynard and the awakening of Aboriginal political consciousness and activism in twentieth century Australia, Thesis (Ph.D.), University of Newcastle, 2002.
• MS 4186 - Freedom Ride papers – Ann Curthoys' diaries of the 1965 Freedom Ride - Finding aid
• MS 4185 - Freedom Ride papers of Pat Healy - Finding aid
• View the finding aids.

The Campaign. The Vote - books

• Bandler, Faith, Turning the Tide: a personal history of the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders, Canberra : Aboriginal Studies Press, 1989
• McGinness, Joe, Son of Alyandabu: my fight for Aboriginal rights, St. Lucia, Qld.:University of Queensland Press , 1991
• Taffe, Sue, Black and white together FCAATSI : the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders, 1958-1973, St Lucia, Qld. : University of Queensland Press, 2005

Articles

• ‘Rights and Advancement’, Newsletter of the Federal Council for Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders, published from No. 1 (Aug. 1966) - no. 21 (Jul./Aug. 1969)

Manuscripts in our collection

• MS 3718 - Joe McGinness papers – Joe McGinness, President of FCAATSI for over 16 years, was the joint national coordinator of the Referendum Campaign- Finding aid
• MS 3759 - FCAATSI papers – includes papers on the 1967 Referendum campaign
• MS 1279 – Maher, E. J., The 1967 Referendum: the shadow and substance of a new deal for Aborigines, B. Litt. Thesis, University of New England, February 1979, [Armidale, NSW] - 1979
• MS 3060 – Raines, Jennifer, The 1967 Aboriginal Referendum: the debate over the “YES” campaign, Thesis (M.A.) - University of Sydney, N.S.W., [199]

Post 1967 - books

• Perkins, Charles, A bastard like me, Sydney, Ure Smith, 1975, chapters 10-15 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library)
• Rowse, Tim, Obliged to be difficult: Nugget Coombs' legacy in Indigenous affairs, Cambridge, Melbourne, Cambridge University Press, 2000
• Department of Aboriginal Affairs, Report of activities for the period 19 December 1972 30 June 1974, Canberra, Australian Government Publishing Service, 1974

Articles

• Gorton, John, Sir, Aboriginal affairs: address by the Prime Minister The Rt Hon John Gorton, at the Conference of Commonwealth and State Ministers responsible for Aboriginal Affairs at Parliament House, Melbourne, 12 July 1968, Canberra, Government Printer, 1968 (Digitised by AIATSIS Library) National Archives of Australia: A1209, 1968/8725 © Commonwealth of Australia. Reproduced by permission

Manuscripts in AIATSIS Library

• MS 4167 - Barrie Dexter papers – includes personal papers on the Council of Aboriginal Affairs
• Finding aid

Anniversaries - books

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, 25 years on, [Canberra], ATSIC, 1992 - Website
• Attwood, Bain, and Markus, Andrew, Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation, The people's movement for reconciliation : proceedings of the Australian Reconciliation Convention. Books 1-5, [Canberra, ACT : Communications Section, Aboriginal Reconciliation Branch, Dept. of Prime Minister & Cabinet], 1997 - Website
• Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, Social Justice Report, Sydney: HREOC, 1997, Chapter 2, p. 14-54 - Website

Articles

• Gilbert, Kevin, Aboriginal sovereignty, in ‘The Oxford companion to Aboriginal art and culture’, general editors, Sylvia Kleinert and Margo Neale ; cultural editor, Robyne Bancroft, Melbourne :Oxford University Press, 2000, p.98-99
• Reynolds, Henry, Aborigines and the 1967 referendum : thirty years on, Papers on Parliament / Research Section, Department of the Senate. no. 31 (1998), p.55-67
• Documents of Reconciliation and Constitutional Issues, A National Document of Reconciliation, paper presented at the Australian Reconciliation Convention by Noel Pearson, 1997 - AUSTLII Website

Films

• Fair Go: winning the 1967 referendum, Sydney, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, [1997]
• Vote Yes for Aborigines, a documentary by Frances Peters-Little, produced by Denise Haslem, 2007. Screened on SBS TV, Sunday 27 May, 8:30pm.