What was the aim of the 1965 Freedom Rides?
Their purpose was threefold. The students planned to draw public attention to the poor state of Aboriginal health, education and housing. They hoped to point out and help to lessen the socially discriminatory barriers which existed between Aboriginal and white residents.
What was the Freedom Ride trying to achieve?
Civil Rights Activists Test Supreme Court Decision The 1961 Freedom Rides sought to test a 1960 decision by the Supreme Court in Boynton v. Virginia that segregation of interstate transportation facilities, including bus terminals, was unconstitutional as well.
Why was the Freedom Ride 1965 a significant event in the development of civil rights in Australia?
Legacy of the Freedom Ride The Freedom Ride was an important contributor to creating an environment for change. It helped move public opinion towards a ‘Yes’ vote in the 1967 referendum to remove the discrimination against Aboriginal Australians from the Australian Constitution.
What inspired the Freedom Ride in Australia?
Inspired by the Freedom Riders of the American Civil Rights Movement, in 1964 students from the University of Sydney formed a group called the Student Action for Aborigines, led by Charles Perkins (the first Indigenous Australian to graduate tertiary education) among others, and travelled into New South Wales country …
What changed because of the freedom riders?
The Freedom Riders challenged this status quo by riding interstate buses in the South in mixed racial groups to challenge local laws or customs that enforced segregation in seating. The Freedom Rides, and the violent reactions they provoked, bolstered the credibility of the American Civil Rights Movement.
What changes did the 1967 referendum bring?
Australians vote yes to change the Constitution On 27 May 1967, Australians voted to change the Constitution so that like all other Australians, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples would be counted as part of the population and the Commonwealth would be able to make laws for them.
Did the Freedom Riders achieve their goal?
The Riders were successful in convincing the Federal Government to enforce federal law for the integration of interstate travel.
What was the impact of the Freedom Riders?
What methods did the Freedom Riders use?
This tactic—nonviolent direct action—utilized sit-ins, strikes, and boycotts to confront injustice. The action was “direct” in the way it confronted and disrupted discriminatory practices such as “whites only” lunch counters and bus terminals and discriminatory hiring practices.
What happened on the freedom rides Australia?
The students travelled to Moree, NSW, and marched to Moree swimming pool to picket prohibiting Indigenous people from swimming in the pool. Fifty years ago, the student action group protested outside the Moree Council Chambers before taking a group of Aboriginal children into the baths to break the racist practice.
Where did the Freedom Ride start in 1965?
The Freedom Ride bus left Sydney on Saturday 12 February 1965. The SAFA stopped at nine towns during their 15 day campaign. Well, we hired the bus. We placed a banner along the front and prepared to start off from Sydney.
Why was the Freedom Ride important to Australia?
Perkins and others did return to help in Walgett. The Freedom Ride through New South Wales towns and the publicity it gained raised consciousness of racial discrimination in Australia and strengthened the campaigns to eradicate it which followed. Australian, 16 February, 17 February, 18 February, 19 February, 25 February, 1965.
Who was Charles Perkins in the Freedom Ride?
Aboriginal student Charles Perkins was, by the end of the journey, a national figure in the fight for Aboriginal rights. The Freedom Ride through western New South Wales towns in February 1965 drew attention to the racism in these towns.
Why was Abschol important to the Freedom Ride?
Abschol, an organisation created by the National Union of University Students to raise funds for scholarships for Aboriginal people, supported all four and all of them made a huge impact on university and later general Australian life. Charles arrived at the University of Sydney already quite a seasoned political activist.