27 May 1967: the 1967 referendum: an uncertain consensus

Abstract

On 27 May 1967, campaigners for the rights and status of Indigenous Australians won the most decisive referendum victory in Australian history. Led by the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders (FCAATSI), these campaigners sought the deletion of two references in the Australian Constitution which\ud they claimed discriminated against Indigenous Australians. Over 90 per cent of Australian voters endorsed the constitutional amendments. In no electorate was the affirmative vote less than 70 per cent; in some it exceeded 95 per cent. This was as close to consensus as can be\ud expected in a democratic contest. The extraordinarily high affirmative vote, however, has promoted exaggerated assessments of the referendum's consequences