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Similar Jimmy Little, Evelyn Scott (activist), Eva Cox | ||
Joyce Caroline Clague (née Mercy; born 22 July 1938) is an Australian political activist and Bundjalung elder. Her activism centers on social change for Indigenous Australians. She was influential in instigating the 1967 Constitutional Referendum and in the 1996 native title claim, known as Yaegl #1, which was settled in 2015.
Biography
Clague was born in the New South Wales town of Maclean, as one of 15 children. As a teenager, she studied nursing in Sydney. She met and became friends with leading members of the Aboriginal-Australian Fellowship and became a member of the Aborigines Progressive Association. In 1960, she attended the third Federal Council for Aboriginal Advancement conference at Newport, Sydney. She found encouragement in a visiting activist, Jack Horner.
She was influential in instigating the 1967 Constitutional Referendum. Following the 1967 referendum, she worked with musician Jimmy Little on a campaign to get Indigenous Australians on the electoral roll. In 1968, she stood for the Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory, with her independent campaign encouraging the enrolment of 6500 Aboriginal people. She convened the Federation Council for Advancement of Aborigines (FCAATSI) in 1969. She was also appointed a representative of the World Churches Commission to Combat Racism. She was elected as Northern Territory state secretary at the 1972 FCAATSI conference. She also worked in the Office of the New South Wales Ombudsman as an assistant investigation officer. She was a founding member of and served two terms as the New South Wales Women's Advisory Council to the Premier.
In 1977, she was awarded the Member of the Order of the British Empire. Her father encouraged her to accept the honor on behalf of Aboriginal people. She refers to the MBE as More Black than Ever.
In the 1980s, she stood for preselection for Australian Labor Party seats in both houses of the Parliament of New South Wales. She was also a member of the Australian Republic Movement. Beginning in 1987, she was treasurer and member of the Metropolitan Land Council.
In November 1996, she and Della Walker lodged a native title claim, known as Yaegl #1, that encompasses a large stretch of the Clarence River and its tributaries, on behalf of the Yaegl people. This was successfully settled at a Federal Court of Australia consent determination hearing in 2015, ending what had been the oldest legal matter before the court.
The 2007 documentary When Colin Met Joyce, written and produced by Paulene Clague, the third of her four daughters, concerns Clague's 40-year relationship with her husband Colin, an Anglo-Australian whose ancestors came from the Isle of Mann. She also appeared in the film about the 1967 referendum, Vote Yes for Aborigines.
The Nungera Museum in Maclean was largely her initiative. After ending her involvement with the project, the museum ultimately failed.