1967 Australian referendum

A national referendum held on 27 May 1967 that approved constitutional changes removing discriminatory provisions concerning Aboriginal people and allowing them to be counted in the census.

Section 51(xxvi) of the Australian Constitution: A constitutional power allowing the Commonwealth Parliament to make laws for people of specified races. The amendment removed the exclusion of Aboriginal people from this federal lawmaking power.
Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders: An Australian civil-rights organization formed in 1958 to campaign for equal rights for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The council coordinated national campaigning for the constitutional changes put to voters in 1967.
Faith Bandler: An Australian Aboriginal and South Sea Islander activist who campaigned for civil rights and helped lead the 1967 referendum campaign. As federal campaign secretary, she organized public advocacy for a 'Yes' vote.
1967 Australian referendum result: The national and state voting totals recorded in Australia's 27 May 1967 constitutional referendum. The 'Yes' vote exceeded 90 percent nationally, the largest affirmative result in an Australian referendum.
1965 Freedom Ride: A bus tour through regional New South Wales organized by Sydney University students to expose racial discrimination against Aboriginal people. Its public protests helped make Aboriginal rights a visible national issue before the referendum.
Section 127 of the Australian Constitution: A former constitutional provision that excluded Aboriginal people from population counts used for constitutional purposes. The referendum repealed this section, removing its exclusion from census population counts.
Aboriginal-Australian Fellowship: A New South Wales organization founded in 1956 to advance Aboriginal rights through cooperation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people. Its activism helped build public support for constitutional reform before the referendum.
Joe McGirr: A New South Wales politician whose 1957 call for a referendum helped spark the campaign for constitutional change. His proposal helped set the referendum campaign in motion.
Aboriginal affairs in Australia: The development and administration of Australian government policies concerning Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The amendment gave the Commonwealth power to legislate for Aboriginal people, but did not itself create specific programs.
1966 Wave Hill walk-off: A strike by Gurindji stockmen and their families at Wave Hill station in the Northern Territory, begun in August 1966. The walk-off showed that Aboriginal political activism extended beyond the referendum campaign.

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