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Who was Eddie Mabo and where was he from?

What is native title?

What does Terra Nullius mean?

Why was Mabo an important case?

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Terra Nullius:
is a Latin expression deriving from Roman law meaning "nobody's land", which is used in international law to describe territory which has never been subject to the sovereignty of any state, or over which any prior sovereign has expressly or implicitly relinquished ...

Native title:
is a form of land title that recognises the unique ties some Aboriginal groups have to land. Australian law recognises that native title exists where Aboriginal people have maintained a traditional connection to their land and waters since sovereignty, and where acts of government have not removed it.

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In 1973 Eddie Koiki Mabo was shocked to discover that the land on Murray Island passed down by
his ancestors for over sixteen generations was not legally recognised as his own. Rather than accept
this injustice, Eddie began an epic ten-year fight for Australian law to recognise traditional land
rights. Eddie never lived to see his land returned to him but the name ‘Mabo’ is now one of the most
significant names in Australian history. In 1992, at only 55, Eddie died of cancer. Five months later
the High Court of Australia overturned the doctrine of terra nullius.

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If they weren't counted in the census, what were Aboriginal people counted as?

Why weren't Indigenous people encouraged to learn or speak their language?

What happens when Indigenous language is allowed/encouraged?

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Gary Williams remembers the Aborigine (sic) referendum

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Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House

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Gary Williams remembers the Aborigine referendum

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In 1967, Australians voted to include Aborigines and Torres Straits Islanders on the national census. Gary Williams remembers what it meant to a 21-year-old Aborigine living in Sydney.

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The 1967 Referendum

Did not give Aboriginal people the right to vote. This right was already introduced in 1962.

Did not grant them citizenship. By the time of the referendum, most of the specific federal and state laws discriminating against Aboriginal people had been repealed.

Was not about equal rights for Aboriginal people. The Constitutional change would not impact at all on laws governing Aboriginal people. However, campaigners hoped that a ‘yes’ vote would require the Commonwealth government to enact reforms which would eventually achieve better rights for Aboriginal people.

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The 1967 Referendum proposed to include Aboriginal people in the census.

The 1967 Referendum proposed to allow the Commonwealth government to make laws for Aboriginal people.

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The following extract was written by the 'Council for Aboriginal Advancement' and was aimed at gaining support for a change to the constitution.

Read this extract and answer the following questions
1)  Language changes over time,
identify words used in this
article that would not now be
used. Discuss why such words
would no longer be used.

2) What did the petition hope to achieve?

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The Australian Constitution determines what power the Commonwealth and the States and territories have.

The main aim of reformers was to have
the Commonwealth Parliament able to make laws affecting Indigenous people. Before 1967 it could not do this in most areas of life.

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An important point of referendum supporters was that if the federal government, and not the state governments, make laws for Aboriginal people the laws which varied greatly from state to state [27] would become uniform, and they hoped for the benefit of Aboriginal people.

Questions:

Look at this table, and:

• summarise what sections 51(xxvi) and 127 as passed
in 1901 meant for Aboriginal people;
• decide what effect you think the proposed changes to
those two sections would make to Aboriginal people.

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This photograph shows
members of the New South Wales
Vote ‘YES’ Committee toasting
their campaign director, Faith
Bandler, after the success of the
1967 Referendum to change the
Australian Constitution.

QUESTION: If you had only this photograph as evidence about this event, what would you say about it?

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The 1967 referendum made history: Australians voted overwhelmingly to amend the constitution to include Aboriginal people in the census and allow the Commonwealth to create laws for them.

Prior to this referendum Indigenous Australians were considered under the 'Flora & Fauna' Act and not counted as actual citizens.

The vote to recognise the First People of Australia in the census was a major step forward in the government policy that had previously dictated Australian government policy