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Day of Mourning held as protest for Indigenous rights.
On the 26th of January 1938, the Day of Mourning was held by the Aborigines League (est. 1932) and the Aborigines Progressive Association (est. 1937). It is the first major protest by Indigenous people. The manifesto "Aborigines Claim Citizen Rights" and the newspaper "Abo Call" are published. -
Indigenous people are given the right to vote.
In 1962, the Menzies Government amended the Commonwealth Electoral Act which gave Indigenous Australians the right to vote, or more specifically, the right to enroll in Commonwealth elections. However, enrollment was not compulsory. -
1967 Referendum held.
On the 27th of May, 1967, the Australian population participated in a referendum concerning Indigenous Australians. Overall, the referendum approved Commonwealth constitutional change, with 90.7% of the population voting YES to count Indigenous Australians in the census and to give the Commonwealth Government power to make laws for them. All six states voted in favour of the proposed changes. -
Tent embassy established outside Parliament House.
On Australia Day 1972, outside Parliament House in Canberra, four Aboriginal men created an Aboriginal Tent Embassy which adopted the Indigenous flag. The embassy was a powerful protest for Aboriginal rights and successfully communicated the significant loss and pain of Aboriginal people. It gained support from Australians all over the country. -
PM Gough Whitlam hands back title to Gurindji people.
On the 16th of August 1975 at the Wave Hill Station in the Northern Territory, the Gurindji people are officially given back their land. This is symbolically represented by the Prime Minister pouring soil into the hands of Vincent Lingerie, who was an Aboriginal rights activist at the time. -
Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth) passed.
The Racial Discrimination Act 1975 is passed. The act states, "It is unlawful for a person to do any act involving a distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of any human right or fundamental freedom in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life." -
Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976 (NT) established.
In December 1976, the Aboriginal Land Rights Act (NT) was established. It was the first legislation to be passed that gave land rights back to the Indigenous people. This act was significant in helping Aboriginal Australians regain their land rights. -
Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983 (NSW) passed.
In 1983, following the introduction of a Land Rights Act in the Northern Territory, NSW passes legislation supporting Aboriginal people in their claim to land. The legislation involved the establishment of several local land councils as well as a state land council. -
Uluru handed back to traditional owners.
In October 1985, hundreds of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians attended a ceremony that officially handed back the title deeds of Uluru back to the Anangu traditional owners. -
Mabo decision by the High Court overturns terra nullius.
In the case, Mabo and others v. Queensland (No. 2), the High Court rejected the idea of terra nullius, instead recognising that Indigenous Australians are the traditional owners of the country. -
Native Title Act 1993 is passed.
After the Mabo decision, where the High Court established that Australia was in fact, not terra nullius upon the arrival of the European settlers, and rather that the Indigenous people are the traditional owners of the land, the Native Title Act 1993 is passed. Its purpose is "to provide a national system for the recognition and protection of native title and for its co-existence with the national land management system." -
Wik decision made by the High Court
The High Court rules in the Wik decision that native title and pastoral leases can co-exist. -
Bringing Them Home report released.
After the National Inquiry into the separation of Indigenous children from their families between 1910 and 1970, the Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission releases the Bringing Them Home report. This inquiry was conducted from the 11th of May 1995 to the 26th of May 1997 when it was tabled in Parliament. -
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd makes a formal apology to the Stolen Generations.
On the 13th of February 2013, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologises to the Indigenous community for the actions of the government during the Stolen Generations. In his speech, he formally acknowledged "the pain, suffering and hurt of the stolen generations, their descendants and for their families left behind." -
Prime Minister Julia Gillard announces plans to recognise Indigenous Australians in the Constitution
PM Julia Gillard announced plans for a referendum that would seek to include recognise Indigenous Australians in the Constitution in November 2010 to further increase the inclusion of Indigenous people in the community.
