About this record

This is a letter from Labor Member of Parliament Kim E Beazley (Senior) to Prime Minister Ben Chifley.

Beazley explains that he is writing the letter because Douglas Nicholls approached him personally to discuss the need for an Aboriginal member of Parliament.

Douglas Nicholls was a Yorta Yorta man who made a significant contribution to many areas of public life in Australia. He was an activist, pastor, soldier and footballer who went on to become the first Aboriginal Governor of South Australia.

When this letter was written in 1949, Nicholls was a representative of the Australian Aborigines League (AAL), an organisation founded by William Cooper, who was his uncle. The AAL lobbied state and federal governments on behalf of Aboriginal peoples.

Kim Beazley (Senior) states that he thinks Nicholls' request for Aboriginal representation in Parliament is 'completely just.' At the time, First Australians were largely excluded from voting in federal elections, and the Australian Parliament's power to make laws for First Australians was limited by the Constitution.

Beazley asks the Prime Minister whether it would be possible to:

• legislate for First Australian representation in the next Australian Parliament;
• hold a referendum to change s51(xxvi) of the Constitution, giving the Australian Parliament the power to make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Beazley pointed out that an Aboriginal member of parliament's impact would be limited if the Australian Parliament remained unable to make laws for First Australians. He argued that justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is a national issue that should be addressed at a national level.

Although the letter concludes with an appeal to the prime minister to 'give earnest and sympathetic consideration to Mr. Nicholls' request,' history shows that the Chifley Government did not take action on Aboriginal representation in parliament or on a referendum to change s51 (xxvi) of the Constitution.

Throughout the 1950s and into the 1960s, activists like Doug Nicholls and the AAL continued to campaign for equal rights, raising awareness for their cause among politicians and the broader Australian community. A milestone was achieved in 1962 when the Australian Parliament passed a law to give Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples the right to vote in federal elections and to stand for election.

In 1967, the Australian Government under prime minister Harold Holt held a referendum to address the sections of the Constitution that discriminated against First Australians. This included amending s51(xxvi) of the Constitution so that Parliament could make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. 90.77% of Australians voted in favour of the proposed changes, making it the most successful referendum in Australian history.

Today, the Australian Constitution does not recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as Australia's First People. In 2023, Australia held a referendum on whether to recognise the First Peoples of Australia in the Constitution through the establishment of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, a recommendation from the Uluru Statement from the Heart. On 14 October 2023, the Australian people voted against the establishment of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

Food for thought

This letter was written 18 years before the 1967 referendum. What might have motivated Douglas Nicholls and the AAL to continue campaigning for constitutional change over the course of almost two decades?