The 1967 Referendum changed the Australian constitution, with the record breaking ‘yes’ vote to count Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the census for the first time. The referendum removed discriminatory clauses from the constitution of 1901, which stated that Indigenous peoples should be a state government responsibility. After the 1967 referendum Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders became eligible for the same social security payments already enjoyed by other Australians.
Lambert McBride’s suitcase. Lambert McBride Collection, John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland
This historic event has been represented in SLQ’s lastest exhibition, Freedom Then, Freedom Now, with a weathered red suitcase on display. This suitcase was used by Lambert McBride whilst campaigning for better conditions for Indigenous people throughout the 1960s. Lambert McBride was the Queensland President of the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders (FCAATSI). His wife May was the Publicity Officer of the Queensland Branch of FCAATSI.
Lambert McBride’s suitcase and papers on display as part of Freedom Then, Freedom Now
7481 Lambert McBride Collection 1963-1997 also contains papers relating to Lambert and May McBride, including documents regarding the 1967 referendum, QCAATSI, FCAATSI, and Commonwealth publications.
McBride’s red suitcase is one of many collection items featured in SLQ’s latest exhibition, Freedom Then, Freedom Now, which runs from 5 May until 1 October 2017.
Freedom Then, Freedom Now – 5 May to 1 October at State Library of Queensland, Level 4
Freedom Then, Freedom Now is an intriguing journey into our recent past exploring the freedoms enjoyed and restricted in Queensland and examines what happens when the collective good intersects with individual rights. Freedoms often depend on age, racial or religious background, gender, income and where you live. Freedoms change over time and with public opinion. This exhibition draws on the extensive collections of SLQ to reminisce, reflect on and explore freedoms lost and won in Queensland.
More:
- Don’t Just Count Us, Let Us Count exhibition
- Lambert and May McBride (Collaborating for Indigenous Rights, National Museum Australia)