March 28 1922 - February 5 1999
Overview:
Neville Bonner, although not an activist by normal standards, changed much when it came to Aboriginal Civil Rights in the middle of the twentieth century. Although he had little formal education, Bonner was the first Aboriginal to be elected into federal parliament.
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Neville Bonner
Bonner was Australia's first aboriginal member of parliment.
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Country:
Australia
Type
of hero: Civil and Political Rights
Attributes:
Strong willed.
Biography:
Born on Ukerebagh Island in the mouth of the Tweed River, Neville Bonner experienced an impoverished childhood. He was born at a time when aboriginals had no rights. His mother could not use the local hospital when she was due to give birth to him. Much of his early life was spent in bushland with no furniture and few possessions.
As a young child, he was forced to help the family by working at clearing lantana (a large weed) from the bush and also as a stockman. After his mother died while he was still young, he went to live with his grandmother. She tried to make sure he caught up on his education and even persuaded the local state school to take him in. He left school at aged 15 having only technically completed third grade.
As an aboriginal, he was denied a good education, was rejected for wartime army services, and worked for less than 15 % the pay of his immediate white boss, working as a carpenter.
In 1967, aboriginals were finally given the vote and other rights they had been deprived of for so long in white Australia. That same year, Bonner joined the One People of Australia League (OPAL) and within that year, became president. At that point, Neville decided it was time to get into politics so he could begin to make a real change. He had a strong belief in the importance of a united Australia – one nation regardless of race, religion or politics.
Neville Bonner was in 1971 the first Aboriginal voted into Federal Parliament in Australia and stayed there until 1983. In that year, the Liberal Party with whom he had aligned himself, dropped him to a lower position of their voting ticket which gave him little chance of being elected. It is thought that this was because he had become increasingly vocal in his support of black activists and aboriginal rights. In spite of this inner party politics, he ran for the seat in the Senate as an Independent, but lost.
He had been increasingly critical of the way the local Queensland State Government was attempting to take control of some of the Aboriginal reserves from the Federal government. He refused to participate in illegal street marches, believing the best way to tackle the problem was through the court system. This earned him the hatred of may activists who felt he was too soft on the government of the day.
Neville was an elected delegate at the Constitutional Convention in Canberra in February 1998, standing for No Republic.
Bonner still continues to fight for what he believes in and fights the way he wants to. Even though many others in his field think that he was a bit soft in his approach to overcome some of the racial prejudice in Australia, his work in the field
Citations
& References:
Links:
http://www.abc.net.au/btn/australians/bonner.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/news/features/obits/bonner/default.htm
http://www.theage.com.au/daily/990206/news/news12.html
http://www.abc.net.au/news/features/obits/bonner/interview.htm
http://www.powerup.com.au/~chris/1995/nbonner.htm
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