In the midst of 1965, a group of students embarked on a trip across western and coastal NSW towns, known as the freedom ride to bring attention to the unjust treatment against aboriginals in rural communities. Charles, at this time was a third year arts student at the University of Sydney who was elected the leader and president of the ‘Freedom Ride’. Charles contributed a major role to this event, by observing the way the aboriginals are treated he compiled a speech directed to 200 people attending the 1965 Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders Conference in Canberra which later appealed to the general public and raised mass awareness for the discerning amount of racial segregation in Australia.
It was no doubt that the 1967 referendum for Australia was one of the most successful and appealing of all. Charles Perkins, after the freedom ride dedicated much of his life as a national leader of the aboriginal people. This lead to the 1967 referendum which concerned the aboriginal people. Charles and his company Foundation for Aboriginal Affairs advocated a ‘yes’ vote to allow the inclusion of aboriginal people into the census and also enabling the parliament of Australia the right to make legislation only concerning aboriginals, which thereby granted them the right of full Australians. It was the most successful referendum with 90.77% of the Australian population voting ‘yes’. After the referendum, Perkins acquired a career as a public servant in Canberra. In 1981 he was appointed Permanent Secretary of the Department of Aboriginal Affairs, the first aboriginal to become a permanent head of a federal government department. In 1989 he stepped down from his role and became the Chair of the Arrente Council of Central Australia. Throughout his careers Charles would always make witty comments and positively racist remarks to the Australian society. Due to this slack regards of rules and outspoken nature he never stayed in a job for too long but he was always aiming for one very important goal that he never swayed from. An unbiased Australia.
The Freedom Rides-
On the night of 12th February 1965, 30 university students lead by Charles Perkins embarked on a campaign in the country towns of New South Wales. This trip is now known as the ‘Freedom Ride’ which derived its name from the Civil Rights Movement in the United States where student protested in the form of bus trips through the Southern states. Students, both African American and white rode in the buses to make the government think twice about racial segregation in public facilities.
Australia, becoming increasingly aware of these Civil Rights movements inspired the notion of the ‘Freedom Ride’. The aim of this campaign was to protest and expose the harsh, embedded and hidden racial discrimination against aboriginals. The students demonstrated and showed the nation the many forms of racial segregation taking place in public facilities such as town hotels, shops, cinemas, swimming pools, rsl clubs and parks. The central role of captured films and speech were used to demonstrate the growing sophistication and realisation of activists who recognized the need to show city dwellers what was happening in the country. The news coverage and media decimated the Australian smugness and ignorance that racism did not exist in Australia. At all times, they ensured that reports of their demonstrations and local townspeople’s responses were available for news broadcast on radio and television. It was of utmost importance that the news got around to all of Australia to embed a vision inside the Australians mind. The exposed evidence of endemic racism was shone into the living rooms of Australians who were in shock as they watched the evening news.
The freedom ride visited a variety of places in the rural areas of New South Wales, these mainly being Walgett, Gulargambone, Kempsey, Bowraville and Moore. When they arrived, students were shocked at the living conditions in which aboriginal people had to suffer. During their journey throughout the country they were often not welcome and driven about by locals. At Moore which was known to be the town where segregation was enforced, the students aimed to bring aboriginals into the swimming pool. The scene unfolded into an ugly dramas tension and aggression were portrayed on both sides; the locals and the aboriginals. Outside Walgett, a student focused his camera on a seemingly hostile convey of cars which stalked the bus out of town at night. Even though It was known ‘The Freedom Ride’ was not extremely welcome in rural areas, they may have went too far when the bus was ran off the road. As the film footage of the scene was unloaded into the news, Australia seemed to stand still for a minute. The racism uncovered by the Freedom Rides was bountiful and horrific. Each and every painful second was loaded onto tape, these included the racial segregation at Moore swimming pool, The Walgett RSL prohibition of aboriginals, The Kempsy Baths and also the Boraville picture theater.
The legacy of the Freedom Rides and what the students had to go through did not all go to waste. In actual fact, it supported and reinstated the 1967 referendum. Perkins and his students had successfully conveyed a message to the whole of Australia starting a numerous range of debates and discussions. This increased the awareness of Aboriginal issues in rural context and inspired follow-up trips to these areas. The publicity gained raised the Australian conscience of racial discrimination and strengthened later campaigns to eradicate it. Later in the year, Harry Hall, president of Walgett Aborigines Progressive Association appealed to Perkins and other Aboriginal activists to assist back in the disruption against the colour bar at Oasis Hotel. After the 1967 referendum, the many amendments made to the aboriginals benefited them greatly in welfare, power and justice. The main outcome and result desired from ‘The Freedom Ride’ was finally achieved, equal justice for aboriginals and whites and creating a country where racism was no longer encouraged and practised.
Bibliography-
-:
-
-
-
By: Jason Zheng