Charles Perkins
Encyclopedia
Charles Nelson Perkins, AO
, commonly known as Charlie Perkins,(born c.1936/1937, in Alice Springs, Northern Territory
— died 19 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales) was an Australian Aboriginal activist, football (soccer)
player and administrator. He was known as Kumantjayi Perkins in the period immediately following his death. Kumantjayi is a name used to refer to a deceased person in Arrernte
culture.
woman and a Kalkadoon
man and had 11 brothers and sisters. Perkins was a cousin of artist and soccer
player John Moriarty
. He married Eileen Munchenberg on 23 September 1961 and had two daughters (Hetti and Rachel
) and one son (Adam).
, the Metropolitan Business College, Sydney
and the University of Sydney
from where he graduated in 1965 with a Bachelor of Arts
, being the first Indigenous Australian to graduate from university. While at university he worked part-time for the City of South Sydney
cleaning toilets.
– a bus tour through New South Wales by activists protesting discrimination against Aboriginal people in small town Australia. This action was inspired by the US Civil Rights
Freedom Ride
campaign in 1961. The Australian Freedom Ride aimed to expose discrepancies in living, education and health conditions among the Aboriginal population. The tour targeted rural towns such as Walgett, Moree
, and Kempsey
. They acted to publicise acts of blatant discrimination. This was demonstrated through one of the Freedom Ride activities in Walgett. A local RSL
club refused entry to Aborigines, including those who were ex-servicemen who participated in the two World Wars. The bus at one stage was run off the road.
On 20 February 1965, Perkins and his party tried to enter the swimming pool at Moree
, where the local council had barred Aboriginal people from swimming for 40 years since it had been opened. In response to this action the riders faced physical opposition from several hundred local white Australians, including community leaders, and were pelted with eggs and tomatoes. These events were broadcast across Australia, and under pressure from public opinion, the council eventually reversed the ban on Aboriginal swimmers. The Freedom Ride then moved on, but on the way out they were followed by a line of cars, one of which collided with the rear of their bus forcing them to return to Moree where they found that the council had reneged on their previous decision. The Freedom Riders protested again forcing the council to again remove the ban.
was held on constitutional amendments to allow inclusion of Aboriginal people in censuses and giving the Parliament of Australia
the right to introduce legislation specifically for Aboriginal people. In the lead up to the referendum Perkins was manager of the Foundation for Aboriginal Affairs, an organization that took a key role in advocating a Yes vote. The constitutional amendment passed with the Yes vote accounting for 90.77% of the vote.
– Country
Coalition government in Western Australia
'racist and redneck'.
In 1981 he was appointed Permanent Secretary of the Department of Aboriginal Affairs, the first Aboriginal to become a permanent head of a federal government department. He served as Chairman of the Aboriginal Development Commission between 1981 and 1984. Throughout his career he was a strident critic of Australian Government
's policies on indigenous affairs and was renowned for his fiery comments. Prime Minister
Bob Hawke
once said of Perkins that he "sometimes found it difficult to observe the constraints usually imposed on permanent heads of departments because he had a burning passion for advancing the interests of his people". Perkins served as Secretary until 1988.
In 1989 became Chair of the Arrernte Council of Central Australia.
In 1993 Perkins was elected commissioner of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission
for an area of the central Northern Territory. In 1994 he was elected Deputy Chairperson of ATSIC.
and the Australian Rugby League
were racist, suggesting that the AFL "acts in a racist manner at the highest level."
. In 1951 he was selected for a South Australia
under 18 representative team. He went on to play for a number of teams in Adelaide including International United (1954–55), Budapest (1956–57) and Fiorentina (1957).
In 1957 he was invited to trial with English first division
team Liverpool FC. Perkins ended up trialling and training with Liverpool's city rival Everton FC. While at Everton Perkins had a physical confrontation with the Everton reserve grade manager after being called a "kangaroo bastard." After this incident Perkins left Liverpool to move to Wigan where he worked as a coal miner at the Mosley Common
Colliery alongside Great Britain
rugby league
player Terry O'Grady. Perkins played two seasons for leading English amateur team Bishop Auckland F.C.
between 1957 and 1959.
Perkins in mid-1959 decided to return to Australia after trialling with Manchester United.
On returning to Australia Perkins was appointed captain/coach of Adelaide Croatia
. At Croatia he played alongside notable Aboriginal figures Gordon Briscoe
and John Moriarty.
In 1961 when Perkins moved to Sydney to study at university he played with Pan-Hellenic (later known as Sydney Olympic FC
) in the New South Wales State League where he became
captain/coach. He later played for Bankstown and retired in 1965.
He later served as president of former National Soccer League
team Canberra City
. He was appointed Australian Soccer Federation (a forerunner of the Football Federation Australia
) vice-president in 1987 and was the chairman of the Australian Indoor Soccer Federation (later known as the Australian Futsal Federation) for ten years until his death in Sydney
in 2000.
Aboriginal of the Year in 1993 and an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1987. Perkins was inducted into the Football Federation Australia Football Hall of Fame for services as a player, coach and administrator in 2000. In 1998 Perkins was awarded an honorary doctorate of letters by the University of Western Sydney
. Shortly before his death he was awarded an honorary doctorate of law by the University of Sydney. Perkins was named by the National Trust of Australia
as one of Australia's Living National Treasures.
In 2001 The Dr Charles Perkins AO Memorial Oration and Dr Charles Perkins AO Memorial Prize were established in his honour by the University of Sydney. In 2009 The Charlie Perkins trust instituted two scholarships per year to allow indigenous Australians to study for up to three years at the University of Oxford
.
uses archival footage from early 1960s to 2001 and builds an intimate and honest portrait of Perkins life bound inexorably with the most dramatic political shifts in Australian Indigenous policy.
. During the 1970s Perkins had had a kidney transplant and at the time of his death was the longest post-transplant survivor in Australia.
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
, commonly known as Charlie Perkins,(born c.1936/1937, in Alice Springs, Northern Territory
Alice Springs, Northern Territory
Alice Springs is the second largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Popularly known as "the Alice" or simply "Alice", Alice Springs is situated in the geographic centre of Australia near the southern border of the Northern Territory...
— died 19 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales) was an Australian Aboriginal activist, football (soccer)
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
player and administrator. He was known as Kumantjayi Perkins in the period immediately following his death. Kumantjayi is a name used to refer to a deceased person in Arrernte
Arrernte people
The Arrernte people , known in English as the Aranda or Arunta, are those Indigenous Australians who are the original custodians of Arrernte lands in the central area of Australia around Mparntwe or Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. The Arrernte tribe has lived there for more than 20,000 years...
culture.
Early life
Charles Perkins was born to an ArrernteArrernte people
The Arrernte people , known in English as the Aranda or Arunta, are those Indigenous Australians who are the original custodians of Arrernte lands in the central area of Australia around Mparntwe or Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. The Arrernte tribe has lived there for more than 20,000 years...
woman and a Kalkadoon
Kalkadoon
Kalkadoon, Indigenous Australian tribe living in the Mount Isa region of Queensland. In 1884 they were massacred at "Battle Mountain", in a fight against police....
man and had 11 brothers and sisters. Perkins was a cousin of artist and soccer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
player John Moriarty
John Moriarty (football)
John Kundereri Moriarty AM is an Indigenous Australian artist, Government advisor and former football player...
. He married Eileen Munchenberg on 23 September 1961 and had two daughters (Hetti and Rachel
Rachel Perkins
Rachel Perkins is a film and television director, film and television producer and a writer. She is known for her films Bran Nue Dae, Radiance and One Night the Moon. Perkins is an Arrernte woman from Central Australia, who was raised in Canberra by parents Eileen and Charles Perkins...
) and one son (Adam).
Education
He was educated at St Mary's Church School in Alice Springs, St Francis College for Aboriginal Boys in AdelaideAdelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, the Metropolitan Business College, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
from where he graduated in 1965 with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
, being the first Indigenous Australian to graduate from university. While at university he worked part-time for the City of South Sydney
City of South Sydney
The South Sydney City Council was a former local government area covering the inner-eastern and inner-southern suburbs of Sydney, Australia. It was forcibly merged with the Sydney City Council by the New South Wales State Government in 2004. The council chambers were located in the Erskineville...
cleaning toilets.
Early career
Perkins worked as an apprentice fitter and turner for the British Tube Mills company in Adelaide between 1952 and 1957.The Freedom Ride
In 1965 he was one of the key members of the Freedom RideFreedom Ride (Australia)
The Freedom Ride of 1964 and 1965 was a significant event in the history of civil rights for Indigenous Australians.Inspired by the Freedom Riders of the American Civil Rights Movement, students from Sydney University formed a group called the Student Action for Aboriginals, led by Charles Perkins...
– a bus tour through New South Wales by activists protesting discrimination against Aboriginal people in small town Australia. This action was inspired by the US Civil Rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
Freedom Ride
Freedom ride
Freedom Riders were civil rights activists who rode interstate buses into the segregated southern United States to test the United States Supreme Court decisions Boynton v. Virginia and Morgan v. Virginia...
campaign in 1961. The Australian Freedom Ride aimed to expose discrepancies in living, education and health conditions among the Aboriginal population. The tour targeted rural towns such as Walgett, Moree
Morée
Morée is a commune in the Loir-et-Cher department of central France.-See also:*Communes of the Loir-et-Cher department...
, and Kempsey
Kempsey, New South Wales
Kempsey is a town in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia and is the council seat for Kempsey Shire. It is located 15 kilometres inland from the coast of the Pacific Ocean where the Pacific Highway and the North Coast railway line cross the Macleay River...
. They acted to publicise acts of blatant discrimination. This was demonstrated through one of the Freedom Ride activities in Walgett. A local RSL
Returned and Services League of Australia
The Returned and Services League of Australia is a support organisation for men and women who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force ....
club refused entry to Aborigines, including those who were ex-servicemen who participated in the two World Wars. The bus at one stage was run off the road.
On 20 February 1965, Perkins and his party tried to enter the swimming pool at Moree
Morée
Morée is a commune in the Loir-et-Cher department of central France.-See also:*Communes of the Loir-et-Cher department...
, where the local council had barred Aboriginal people from swimming for 40 years since it had been opened. In response to this action the riders faced physical opposition from several hundred local white Australians, including community leaders, and were pelted with eggs and tomatoes. These events were broadcast across Australia, and under pressure from public opinion, the council eventually reversed the ban on Aboriginal swimmers. The Freedom Ride then moved on, but on the way out they were followed by a line of cars, one of which collided with the rear of their bus forcing them to return to Moree where they found that the council had reneged on their previous decision. The Freedom Riders protested again forcing the council to again remove the ban.
1967 Referendum
In 1967 a referendumReferendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
was held on constitutional amendments to allow inclusion of Aboriginal people in censuses and giving the Parliament of Australia
Parliament of Australia
The Parliament of Australia, also known as the Commonwealth Parliament or Federal Parliament, is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It is bicameral, largely modelled in the Westminster tradition, but with some influences from the United States Congress...
the right to introduce legislation specifically for Aboriginal people. In the lead up to the referendum Perkins was manager of the Foundation for Aboriginal Affairs, an organization that took a key role in advocating a Yes vote. The constitutional amendment passed with the Yes vote accounting for 90.77% of the vote.
Public service
In 1969 Perkins began his career as a public servant as a Senior Research Officer with the Office of Aboriginal Affairs. In 1972, as a public servant, he was suspended for alleged improper conduct after he called the LiberalLiberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
– Country
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...
Coalition government in Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
'racist and redneck'.
In 1981 he was appointed Permanent Secretary of the Department of Aboriginal Affairs, the first Aboriginal to become a permanent head of a federal government department. He served as Chairman of the Aboriginal Development Commission between 1981 and 1984. Throughout his career he was a strident critic of Australian Government
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
's policies on indigenous affairs and was renowned for his fiery comments. Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
Bob Hawke
Bob Hawke
Robert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....
once said of Perkins that he "sometimes found it difficult to observe the constraints usually imposed on permanent heads of departments because he had a burning passion for advancing the interests of his people". Perkins served as Secretary until 1988.
In 1989 became Chair of the Arrernte Council of Central Australia.
In 1993 Perkins was elected commissioner of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission was the Australian Government body through which Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders were formally involved in the processes of government affecting their lives...
for an area of the central Northern Territory. In 1994 he was elected Deputy Chairperson of ATSIC.
Public commentary
Perkins on 7 April 2000 in reference to the impending Sydney Olympic Games, suggested that 'Sydney will burn during the Olympics.' The comment sparked outrage from many quarters. In May 2000 Perkins declared that the Australian Football LeagueAustralian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
and the Australian Rugby League
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
were racist, suggesting that the AFL "acts in a racist manner at the highest level."
Football career
Perkins began playing in 1950 with Adelaide team Port ThistlePort Adelaide Pirates
Port Adelaide Lion Soccer Club is a football club from Port Adelaide, South Australia. Pirates play in the FFSA South Australian Premier League. Its home ground is at John Hart Reserve, Ethelton.-History:...
. In 1951 he was selected for a South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
under 18 representative team. He went on to play for a number of teams in Adelaide including International United (1954–55), Budapest (1956–57) and Fiorentina (1957).
In 1957 he was invited to trial with English first division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
team Liverpool FC. Perkins ended up trialling and training with Liverpool's city rival Everton FC. While at Everton Perkins had a physical confrontation with the Everton reserve grade manager after being called a "kangaroo bastard." After this incident Perkins left Liverpool to move to Wigan where he worked as a coal miner at the Mosley Common
Mosley Common
Mosley Common is a suburb of Tyldesley at the far-eastern edge of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England.It was anciently a hamlet in the east of the township of Tyldesley cum Shakerley, in the ancient parish of Leigh...
Colliery alongside Great Britain
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
player Terry O'Grady. Perkins played two seasons for leading English amateur team Bishop Auckland F.C.
Bishop Auckland F.C.
Bishop Auckland Football Club are an English football team based in Bishop Auckland, County Durham. They are one of the most successful amateur sides, having won the old FA Amateur Cup on 10 occasions , and losing finalists on a further 8. They currently play in the Northern League Division One. ...
between 1957 and 1959.
Perkins in mid-1959 decided to return to Australia after trialling with Manchester United.
On returning to Australia Perkins was appointed captain/coach of Adelaide Croatia
Adelaide Raiders
Raiders is a football club in Adelaide, South Australia, that plays in the South Australian Super League. Its home ground is the Croatian Sports Centre in Gepps Cross, a northern suburb of Adelaide. It is a Croatian Australian-backed club and is also known by the name "Adelaide Croatia"...
. At Croatia he played alongside notable Aboriginal figures Gordon Briscoe
Gordon Briscoe
Dr Gordon Briscoe AO is an Indigenous Australian academic and activist. He is also a former Association football player.-Early life:...
and John Moriarty.
In 1961 when Perkins moved to Sydney to study at university he played with Pan-Hellenic (later known as Sydney Olympic FC
Sydney Olympic FC
Sydney Olympic Football Club is an Australian football club that plays in the NSW Premier League. It competed in the National Soccer League from 1977 until the league's demise in 2004, having won the championship in 1989–90, 2001–02, the League Cup in 1980, the minor premiership in 2002–03 and the...
) in the New South Wales State League where he became
captain/coach. He later played for Bankstown and retired in 1965.
He later served as president of former National Soccer League
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...
team Canberra City
Canberra City SC
Canberra City Football Club, also known for some time as the Canberra Arrows, is an Australian football club based in Canberra in the ACT...
. He was appointed Australian Soccer Federation (a forerunner of the Football Federation Australia
Football Federation Australia
Football Federation Australia is the governing body for the sport of football in Australia. Before 1 January 2005, it was known as the Australian Soccer Association , which succeeded Soccer Australia in this role in 2003...
) vice-president in 1987 and was the chairman of the Australian Indoor Soccer Federation (later known as the Australian Futsal Federation) for ten years until his death in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in 2000.
Awards and honours
Perkins was awarded Jaycees Young Man of the Year in 1966, NAIDOCNAIDOC
NAIDOC is an awareness committee and the name of an Australian week of observance lasting from the first Sunday in July until the following Sunday....
Aboriginal of the Year in 1993 and an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1987. Perkins was inducted into the Football Federation Australia Football Hall of Fame for services as a player, coach and administrator in 2000. In 1998 Perkins was awarded an honorary doctorate of letters by the University of Western Sydney
University of Western Sydney
The University of Western Sydney, also known as UWS, is a multi-campus university in the Greater Western region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
. Shortly before his death he was awarded an honorary doctorate of law by the University of Sydney. Perkins was named by the National Trust of Australia
National Trust of Australia
The Australian Council of National Trusts is the peak body for community-based, non-government organisations committed to promoting and conserving Australia's indigenous, natural and historic heritage....
as one of Australia's Living National Treasures.
In 2001 The Dr Charles Perkins AO Memorial Oration and Dr Charles Perkins AO Memorial Prize were established in his honour by the University of Sydney. In 2009 The Charlie Perkins trust instituted two scholarships per year to allow indigenous Australians to study for up to three years at the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
.
Film and documentary
- 1993: Freedom Ride by Rachel Perkins, Ned R Lander – Australia – 55 minutes
- 2009: Fire TalkerFire TalkerFire Talker is a 2009 documentary film by Australian filmmaker Ivan Sen. It is a documentary biopic about Australian Aboriginal political activist, footballer and administrator, Charlie Perkins. It premiered at the 10th Anniversary of the Message Sticks Indigenous Film Festival held at the Sydney...
- 2009: Remembering Charlie PerkinsRemembering Charlie PerkinsRemembering Charlie Perkins is a tribute to Aboriginal activist Dr. Charles N. Perkins. It features Professor Gordon Briscoe who was with Perkins from early times. Briscoe recounts Perkins's life and events in activism....
56 minutes 38 seconds
Freedom Ride
Freedom Ride is part of a four-episode documentary by Rachel Perkins and Ned Lander. It tells a chapter of Charles Perkins' life. The Freedom Ride was a bus load of concerned white and black people, most of them university students, who visited several towns in rural and outback Australia to escalate the level of public awareness about the level of racial intolerance in Australia.Fire Talker: The Life and Times of Charlie Perkins
This film by Ivan SenIvan Sen
Ivan Sen is an Australian filmmaker. Throughout the late 1990s Sen worked on numerous short films, before making his feature film debut with Beneath Clouds in 2002. He studied filmmaking at the Australian Film Television and Radio School, where he produced his first short films, working with the...
uses archival footage from early 1960s to 2001 and builds an intimate and honest portrait of Perkins life bound inexorably with the most dramatic political shifts in Australian Indigenous policy.
Remembering Charlie Perkins
2009 Charlie Perkins memorial oration, Professor Briscoe recalls Perkins' fight for equality and liberty.Death
Perkins died in October 2000 of renal failureRenal failure
Renal failure or kidney failure describes a medical condition in which the kidneys fail to adequately filter toxins and waste products from the blood...
. During the 1970s Perkins had had a kidney transplant and at the time of his death was the longest post-transplant survivor in Australia.
External links
- Classroom resources on Charles Perkins: Institutions, Freedom Ride
- The Charlie Perkins Trust for Children and Students
- National Portrait Gallery: Charles Perkins on his way to Sydney University, photograph by Robert McFarlane