Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Resources

Up until the 1970s, generations of Aboriginal workers in WA had their wages systematically stolen over decades, and only a small minority received reparation. This website includes podcasts and editorials.

This class action was on behalf of the thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Western Australia whose wages were unjustly withheld or not paid as a result of wage control legislation in effect until 1972.

In the 20th century, governments in Australia commonly withheld Indigenous people’s wages or authorised private employers of Indigenous people to withhold them. This article explores the legal and administrative avenues available to Indigenous claimants.

For 30 years, Indigenous workers received little or no pay for their hard labour. Today, their descendants are still feeling the effects.

On January 26 1938, while many Australians celebrated the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the landing of the First Fleet, a group of Aboriginal men and women gathered at Australia Hall in Sydney.

The Aboriginal Day of Mourning – the Indigenous response to Australia’s sesquicentenary in 1938 – was the first national gathering of Indigenous people protesting against the prejudice and discrimination that was a daily part of their lives, and marked the beginning of the modern Aboriginal political movement.

The 1967 Referendum sought to change two sections of the Constitution in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. 90.77 per cent of Australian voters voted ‘Yes’ to the changes.

On May 27, 1967, Australians voted in a referendum to change how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were referred to in the Constitution.

The inside story of another crucial moment of national decision - the 1967 Referendum. We commemorate the 10 year campaign that won an unprecedented 90.77% Yes vote in the 1967 Referendum about indigenous citizenship.

On 26 January 1972, four First Nations men set up a beach umbrella on the lawns opposite Parliament House in Canberra. Describing the umbrella as the ‘Aboriginal Embassy’, the men were protesting against the McMahon government’s approach to Indigenous land rights.

The Aboriginal Tent Embassy is the longest ongoing protest for First Nations land rights in the world. It began with four First Nations fellas and a beach umbrella. Today it’s a symbol of First Nations sovereignty, and a powerful reminder that it has never been ceded.

Eddie Koiki Mabo's campaign for Indigenous land rights led to a landmark decision of the High Court of Australia, on 3 June 1992 that overturned the legal fiction of terra nullius. Recognising the High Court's ruling in Mabo remains the basic legal document on native title. Native title is the recognition that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have rights and interests to land and waters according to their traditional law and customs as set out in Australian Law, governed by the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth).

The two Mabo collections held in the National Library are an extraordinary record of one of the most important and controversial legal cases in Australian history and of the life of the man who is chiefly associated with the case. Their significance was recognised when, together with the Endeavour journal of James Cook, they were the first Australian collections to be placed on UNESCO’s Memory of the World register in 2001.

On 3 June 1992 the High Court of Australia recognised that a group of Torres Strait Islanders, led by Eddie Mabo, held ownership of Mer (Murray Island). In acknowledging the traditional rights of the Meriam people to their land, the court also held that native title existed for all Indigenous people.

You can access Bills for the Commonwealth, and all Australian States and Territories.

Browse or search Acts in force or as made. The Federal Register of Legislation is the authorised version of legislation for the Commonwealth.

Current consolidations and historical versions of Acts and regulations. Acts and regulations as passed from 2003 onwards.

Hansard is the name given to the edited transcripts of debates in the Senate, House of Representatives, Federation Chamber and parliamentary committees. They are published shortly after the chamber or committee proceedings have concluded.

Information on how to track a bill regarding Native Title

Native title is the recognition that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have rights and interests to land and waters according to their traditional law and customs as set out in Australian law. Native title is governed by the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth).

The National Native Title Tribunal (NNTT) is an independent body established by the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth). This website provides information about Indigenous Land Use Agreements, Native Title Claims and Registers, and geospatial mapping information.

South Australian Native Title Services Ltd (SANTS) assist Aboriginal people in South Australia to recognise and protect their native title rights and interests.

ANTaR is a national advocacy organisation dedicated specifically to the rights - and overcoming the disadvantage - of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, primarily through lobbying, public campaigns and advocacy.

Managing native title rights and interests across Australia

Advisory to and provide the government with legal and legal-policy advice on native title.

Closing the Gap aims to improve the lives of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. The Aust. Govt. website includes the most current 2020 Closing the Gap report and previous annual reports.

A central hub for information about the government initiative that aims to address Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander disadvantage in health, education and employment. This section provides a comprehensive collection of publications, resources, policies and programs relating to Closing the Gap.

The Coalition of Peaks is a representative body of around 50 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations who are working towards an agreement making process with COAG for Closing the Gap.

National NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia in the first week of July each year (Sunday to Sunday), to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth.

NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines [sic] and Islanders Day Observance Committee. Its origins can be traced to the emergence of Aboriginal groups in the 1920′s which sought to increase awareness in the wider community of the status and treatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.

NAIDOC week is a big celebration for Indigenous people and a highlight on the Blak calendar - it is our Blak Christmas. While reconciliation week focuses on relations between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, NAIDOC week is purely to celebrate our culture and achievements.

The lead body for reconciliation in Australia, this website provides information on Indigenous Governance, Reconciliations Action Plans (RAPs), and reconciliation events and education programs. Reconciliation Australia's vision of reconciliation is based and measured on five dimensions: historical acceptance; race relations; equality and equity; institutional integrity and unity.

Reconciliation SA’s strategic focus is based on the dimensions of reconciliation developed by Reconciliation Australia.

Mabo Day is marked annually on 3 June. It commemorates Mer Island man Eddie Koiki Mabo and his successful efforts to overturn the legal fiction of terra nullius, or ‘land belonging to no-one’.

The Uluru Statement from the Heart is a call for constitutional change and structural reform in the relationship between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and Australia.

The Australian Government has commenced a national co-design process to develop models for an Indigenous voice at a local, regional and national level. Visit this website to read about the co-design process.

The Government of South Australia has committed to a state-based implementation of the Uluru Statement from the Heart - Voice, Treaty and Truth - commencing with the South Australian First Nations Voice to Parliament. This is a legislatively created board that provides advice to members of Parliament.