Civil disturbances in Western Australia

This is a list of civil disturbances in Western Australia. Some of the civil disturbances in this list are considered to be race riots, prison riots, and religious conflicts – often Protestant versus Catholic groups.

The earliest civil disturbances were actions by the local indigenous population dealing with European settlers.

Demonstrations and Protests are linked to a range of issues over time.

In the convict era, there were collective actions by convicts. Organised labour had to deal with issues on the Goldfields in the 1890s and 1900s with demonstrations and protest actions, while in Perth these occurred in the 1960s and 1970s over war and race issues.

There are some incidents in the 19th century where the causes are less clear. A restricted press and limited means of some groups to gain avenues to express their grievances in a dominated society, means that some disturbances were suppressed literally and disguised in the public record.

In some cases some smaller disturbances (alcohol-related fights) in the Goldfields (Kalgoorlie, Boulder and Coolgardie for instance) would not be considered full-scale riots, but nonetheless the charges found either in newspaper or police records would suggest a significance beyond a simple incidence of drunken behaviour.