We live in a world of conflict; where the victors write our history and the losers just fade away.
That may be the case, but not in Wollongong.
Two years ago, more than 500 locals put their lives on hold for a few months to campaign in support of the Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
Nationally, the vote went down 60 per cent to 40 per cent. But in Wollongong, and the federal seat of Cunningham, it was a very different story. That story, of how a grassroots campaign took to the streets, railway stations, shopping centres and sporting stadiums to deliver a majority vote, has been captured in a book, We Voted Yes: The Wollongong Voice Referendum Story.
It's been a 12-month process, capturing individual accounts from dozens of locals involved in the campaign. From an enthusiastic launch at the University of Wollongong, to the bitter disappointment of the night the votes were counted.
In her thought-provoking Foreword to the book, Wadi Wadi Elder Dr Aunty Barbara Nicholson OAM summed up that feeling of emptiness. "Sixty years of political struggle by the First Australians to achieve their basic civil, human and equal rights was either wiped out or under grave threat of being wiped out by that contentious vote. It cannot be called anything other than a national tragedy.
The book details all the highs and lows of the campaign and the creation of a new allyship, the Friends of Woolyungah, one of the few positives to come from this difficult time.
John Corker, who was coordinator of the local Yes23 campaign, reflected positively that of the 54 polling places in the electorate, 41 recorded a majority Yes vote. For John, the highlight of the campaign was the coming together of 2,000 people on the weekend prior to the 14 October 2023 vote for a rally and march across Windang Bridge.
There are many views expressed in the book as to why Australia wasn't able to support the Voice to Parliament. Former Wollongong Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery probably best summed it up, saying a combination of racism, misinformation and vitriol turned the tide.
We Voted Yes: The Wollongong Voice Referendum Story will be launched at UOW's Woolyungah on Friday, 10 October, and will be available for sale after that date at Collins Booksellers Thirroul, and from Woolyungah.
