By Meryl Brown Tobin

“Give us a fair go!”  

In the mid 1950s that’s what indigenous Pastor Doug Nicholls told my school assembly.

Pastor Doug, who played VFL football for Fitzroy in the 1930s and who went on to become Governor of South Australia in 1976, was an indigenous activist. He sought to build bridges between indigenous and non-indigenous peoples.  

Probably the first Aborigine I’d seen, what an impression he made.

In those days we used white-washed words such as "European settlement" and "occupation" to describe the invasion and seizure of the Aboriginal lands the white "colonialists" called Australia.  Words such as "Aboriginal wars" and "massacres" were not used, although later "punitive expeditions" got a mention.

Because he was Aboriginal, Pastor Doug told the school assembly if he wanted to travel by train he had to travel under the protection of the guard in the guard’s van. He objected to this. No doubt all Aboriginal Australians, including the Aboriginal former soldiers who had fought for Australia in World War II, and whom, at that time, I hadn’t even known existed, would have objected too.

Following on Pastor Doug’s speech, I tried to give Aborigines a fair go, as I would anyone else. So I went to my principal and asked if the money we collected at the school for social services (charities) could be used to sponsor an Aboriginal student at our school.  

I was patted on the shoulder, told no, and sent on my way.

When researching this article, I looked up Douglas Nicholls - Wikipedia and learned in the late 1930s Pastor Doug was Secretary of the Australian Aborigines' League.  Even then the league  had been lobbying for Aboriginal Affairs to be made a Federal matter. 

Making this happen required a change in the Constitution, which required a referendum. As early as February 1935 (nearly 90 years ago) members of the league were lobbying Thomas Paterson, the Commonwealth minister for the Interior, and other MPs on this issue. 

On Australia Day, 1938, Doug Nicholls participated in the Day of Mourning protest for Aborigines. Indigenous leaders from all over Australia made the demand to change the Constitution.

The proposed resolution was:
"WE, representing THE ABORIGINES OF AUSTRALIA, assembled in conference at the Australian Hall, Sydney, on the 26th day of January, 1938, this being the 150th Anniversary of the Whiteman's seizure of our country, HEREBY MAKE PROTEST against the callous treatment of our people by the whitemen during the past 150 years, AND WE APPEAL to the Australian nation of today to make new laws for the education and care of Aborigines, we ask for a new policy which will raise our people TO FULL CITIZEN STATUS and EQUALITY WITHIN THE COMMUNITY.

It took nearly another 30 years of campaigning until the Holt Coalition Government held the 1967 Australian referendum of May 27,1967. 

Voters were asked if they wanted to amend the Constitution to allow the Commonwealth to make laws for Aboriginal people and include them in the Census for Population and Housing conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. 

The Labor Opposition led by Gough Whitlam fully supported the Yes vote. 

Perhaps due to this bipartisanship and to the Australian egalitarian notion of ‘giving a fair go’ to all, 90.77 per cent voters voted Yes for the change, and there was majority support in all six states. 

At last Aborigines were recognised as part of the nation.

Though this was a great win for First Nations people, 56 years later they are still fighting for "a fair go".

Many see the referendum on The Voice as the next step.  

In October Australians will vote on the following:

“A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.
Do you approve this proposed alteration?”

Will Australians again resoundingly show their support for First Nations people? Will they let them and the world know Australians recognise the important place First Nations people hold as the traditional owners of Australia?

On Sunday, September 24 around 300 people marched in Wonthaggi in support of a Yes vote for The Voice. Across the country, many other marches have already been held, and others are planned.

October 14 is Referendum Day, with early voting centres opening on October 2.

As they did at the 1967 Referendum, will Australians vote to give your people a fair go at this one, Pastor Doug?

Meryl Brown Tobin is a professional writer and former secondary teacher.