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Two Way Governance: Presentation 5
The original 1901 Constitution didn’t
recognise Aboriginal people at all. All it
said was that Aboriginal people could
not be counted in the Census. This was
changed after a long campaign by
Aboriginal people and their supporters
in 1967.
There have been 44 tries to change the
Constitution and only 8 have
succeeded.
It takes a majority of votes in every
State and a majority nationally.
Northern Territory citizens only got the
power to vote in referendums in 1977.
Being counted in the Census meant Aboriginal people
were recognised as Australian citizens who were
entitled to the same benefits, rights and
responsibilities as other Australian citizens.