The influence of faith-based organisations on Australian social policy

This historical overview explores the crucial and changing relationships between faith-based organisations and governments, not only in the implementation of social services but also in the formation of social policy. Historically Australian governments have left large areas of social provision to the non-government sector. For example, income support for the unemployed was not taken up by governments until World War II and income support for sole parents remained largely a responsibility for non-government organisations (NGOs) until the 1970s. Prior to governments taking responsibility for income support, most of these NGOs were religious organisations surviving on donations, philanthropic support and limited government funding. It is argued that the dominant, semi-public role of religious organisations in service delivery and social policy formation is an important but largely overlooked aspect of the Australian historical experience

Book reviews : David Palmer, Ross Shanahan, and Martin Shanahan, eds., Australian Labor history reconsidered

An objective of this collection is to bring the history of the Australian labor movement to international attention. The editors introduce the collection with a brief overview of Australian labor history, emphasizing differences between the Australian and American experiences. The introduction argues that a unique aspect of Australian labor history is &ldquo;laborism,&rdquo; which is defined as the central place of the labor movement in Australian culture, as compared with the more marginal position of the labor movement in America. In Australia, this centrality is reflected in the embedding of trade unions and labor in the state through wage-fixing tribunals, a social security system designed to support the families of male wage earners, and the Australian Labor Party\u27s strong links to the trade union movement. The introduction is informative and especially benefits from the insights of David Palmer, an American historian teaching at Adelaide\u27s Flinders University. However, the introduction was apparently written later at the suggestion of an American reader and has thus not been fully integrated into the structure of the book.<br /

New residents—new city. The role of urban activists in the transformation of inner city Melbourne

This study of inner suburban residents\u27 associations in Melbourne in the 1960s and 1970s examines the role of social activism in shaping Australia\u27s urban dynamics. It argues that the focus on gentrification as an all-embracing explanatory concept in urban studies in Australia and elsewhere has detracted attention from the importance of structural change especially the de-industrialisation of the inner suburbs and the influence of urban activists and residents\u27 associations in this period. The article concludes that insufficient analysis of social and economic change and the limited recognition of the importance of diverse communities continue to limit inclusive policy responses to urban reconstruction in Australia.<br /

A new relationship between planning and democracy? Urban activism in Melbourne 1965-1975

This paper is a reflective overview of urban social protest in the years 1965-1975 and its influence on post-war planning, especially on models of public participation in planning, and conceptions of effective local democracy. Drawing extensively on a major study of urban activism in Melbourne, Australia, the paper discusses the political and organisational strategies used by activists in Melbourne&rsquo;s inner city areas to resist the large-scale planning/urban renewal projects especially of the Victorian state government. The paper focuses on Melbourne&rsquo;s inner city Residents&rsquo; Action Groups and examines their motivations, strategies and rationales, placing them within an international context of urban protest movements demanding local democracy and consultation. The paper concludes that the Melbourne urban protest movements of the late 60s and early 70s deserve recognition for their contribution to inclusive, consultative processes in planning decision-making. This is done within a context of questioning contemporary academic discussion around the interpretative concept of gentrification, widely and indiscriminately applied to this and later periods of urban change.<br /

\u27Nobody but a bunch of mothers\u27 : grassroots activism and women\u27s leadership in 1970s Melbourne

This group biography draws on oral history interviews to show how crucial women\u27s leadership was to Melbourne\u27s urban protest movement in the 1970s. Inner city resident\u27s action groups were characterised by a high degree of participation by women. For most it was a radicalising experience as they became involved in action for the first time in their lives. Their involvement in local action and politics contributed to the development of more open and participatory governance focused on community building and environmental issues.<br /