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| Aboriginal-Australian Fellowship | |
|---|---|
| Name | Aboriginal-Australian Fellowship |
| Abbreviation | AAF |
| Formed | 1956 |
| Dissolved | 1969 |
| Type | Advocacy organisation |
| Headquarters | Sydney, New South Wales |
| Region served | Australia |
| Key people | Pearl Gibbs; Faith Bandler; Bill Onus; Jack Patten |
Aboriginal-Australian Fellowship
The Aboriginal-Australian Fellowship was a Sydney-based advocacy group founded in 1956 that campaigned for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rights, civil liberties, and citizenship reforms in the mid-20th century. It operated alongside and in dialogue with many contemporary organisations, movements and prominent activists, contributing to campaigns that culminated in the 1967 referendum and influenced later Indigenous institutions. The Fellowship connected with a wide network of activists, unions, churches and media figures to press for legislative and social change.
The Fellowship emerged in a postwar era shaped by debates involving Native Welfare Conference (1948), the Australian Council of Churches, and activists returning from service in World War II. Founders and early figures included activists linked to events like the Day of Mourning (1938), the Aborigines Progressive Association, and the work of leaders such as William Cooper, Jack Patten, and Pearl Gibbs. Its formation paralleled campaigns by organisations including the Federal Council for Aboriginal Advancement, the Aboriginal-Australian Fellowship (South Australia)-era groups, and the One People of Australia League. The Fellowship coordinated with trade unions such as the Australian Labour Party-aligned unions, and intersected with cultural initiatives involving figures like David Unaipon and institutions such as the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. During the 1950s and 1960s the Fellowship worked within political environments shaped by legislation like the Aborigines Protection Act 1909 (NSW) context and debates addressed at state fora such as the New South Wales Legislative Council and federal bodies including the Parliament of Australia.
The Fellowship’s objectives included promoting citizenship rights, securing equal access to services, and abolishing discriminatory controls tied to state and territorial statutes such as the Aborigines Act 1936 (WA)-era frameworks and policy instruments debated in Canberra. Activities ranged from public meetings held at venues associated with the Sydney Town Hall and community centres to lobbying ministers like those within the Australian Labor Party (New South Wales Branch) and interacting with legal advocates connected to the High Court of Australia and civil liberties campaigns. The Fellowship produced pamphlets, coordinated petitions to figures including Prime Minister Robert Menzies and Prime Minister Harold Holt, and collaborated with media outlets such as the Sydney Morning Herald and broadcasters at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It engaged with cultural forms through exhibitions referencing artists associated with movements tied to places like the Hermannsburg School and performers linked to the Aboriginal Tent Embassy precursors.
Leadership comprised Indigenous and non-Indigenous activists including prominent members like Pearl Gibbs, Faith Bandler, Bill Onus, and local organisers who had connections to leaders such as A. O. Neville-era opponents, and contemporaries like Mum Shirl and Oodgeroo Noonuccal. Membership drew from networks involving the Australian Council of Trade Unions, the Catholic Church in Australia, the Uniting Church in Australia, and activists who had worked with figures like Fred Maynard and Douglas Nicholls. The Fellowship’s committees overlapped with those of organisations including the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders and local groups meeting at venues associated with the Yarra Theatrette and community halls frequented by attendees from regions such as Redfern and La Perouse.
The Fellowship took part in national campaigns including those that contributed to the run-up to the 1967 Australian referendum, coordinated protests linked to anniversaries of the Day of Mourning (1938), and organised delegations to discuss land and welfare issues with parliamentary delegations in Canberra. It staged meetings and rallies in urban centres including Sydney, connected with union-led actions involving the Builders Labourers Federation, and liaised with activists associated with the Aborigines Progressive Association and cultural advocates close to Charles Perkins. The Fellowship’s events intersected with media coverage by outlets like Truth (Sydney newspaper) and were noted alongside campaigns by entities such as the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT) and the later National Aboriginal Conference.
The Fellowship maintained cooperative and sometimes tense relationships with contemporaries including the Federal Council for Aboriginal Advancement, the One People of Australia League, the Aborigines Advancement League (Victoria), and religiously affiliated groups such as the Aborigines Inland Mission. It worked alongside trade union bodies like the Australian Council of Trade Unions and political parties including the Australian Labor Party (ALP), while engaging legal allies associated with the Law Society of New South Wales and advocacy networks connected to the Australian Council of Social Service. International linkages included affinities with Indigenous movements abroad such as contacts reflecting attention to events like the Civil Rights Movement in the United States and indigenous diplomacy involving representatives who liaised with organisations tracking developments in United Nations forums.
The Fellowship’s campaigning contributed to shifts in public opinion that helped secure constitutional recognition reforms in the 1967 Australian referendum and inspired subsequent institutions such as the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT), the Aboriginal Medical Service movement, and the Land Rights movement that led to milestones like the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976. Its members influenced later leaders associated with the Aboriginal Tent Embassy protests and organisations including the National Aboriginal Conference and ATSIC. The Fellowship’s archival traces appear in collections at institutions such as the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies and influenced scholarship by historians writing about figures like Henry Reynolds and Marcia Langton, while shaping civic memory in localities such as Redfern and national narratives preserved in the National Library of Australia.
Category:Defunct organisations based in New South Wales Category:Indigenous Australian organisations