Neville+Bonner

 **  Neville Bonner  ** Neville Bonner was Australia's first Aboriginal politician. He became a senator for Queensland and sat in this position for almost twelve years (11/6/1971-4/2/1983). He was also the first Indigenous person to sit in federal parliament. A main focal point in his work as a politician included improving and developing the status and circumstances of his fellow Indigenous people. Bonner supported in changing the face of Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander’s rights in Australia. He was also a conscientious, friendly man who never allowed anger overpower or impede his work. Neville Bonner was born in 1922 at Franklin Island, a small settlement somewhere near the Tweed River in north NSW. His mother was an Aboriginal woman, but he didn’t get the chance to see his father, who was an Englishman who sailed back to England before Neville was born. When Neville was about five years of age, his family left the island to live with his grandparents in a small hollow his grandfather had dug out under some lantana bushes. They had some old bags and blankets, but no proper furniture and few other items in their possession. Life was very tough for Neville as he grew up. When Neville was barely seven, he had to assist his stepfather and his grandfather to earn some more money by helping to clear the bushland and forest areas. When Neville's mother died, he and his brother Jimmy lived with his grandparents at Ipswich. His grandmother spoke perfect English and insisted that Neville was to speak and write in English as well. Neville loved school, but when his grandmother died he was grief-stricken. He decided to pack his bags and set off to find a job to earn some money. While he was working, he met Mona Banfield. He married her in 1943 and lived on Palm Island, a small indigenous settlement. Along with his wife and five children, Neville lived on Palm Island for sixteen years. It was during this time he took an interest in changing and developing the way his people lived. When he left Palm Island with his family, he joined the One People of Australia League; or O.P.A.L, for short. O.P.A.L. was an organization designed for the purpose of assisting Aboriginals and Torres Straight Islanders with welfare, housing and education. But in 1967, a major breakthrough came in. A mandate that was held changed the way Aborigines were treated.

   It was in about 1970 that Neville decided it was time to attempt to enter politics, so he joined the Liberal Party. Following the resignation of Senator Dame Annabelle Rankin in 1971, Bonner was elected to fill the vacancy. He thus became the first indigenous Australian to sit in the Australian Parliament. He was officially titled the first indigenous politician on June 11, 1971. He was elected as a senator candidate through voting in 1972, 1974, 1975 and 1980. For twelve years, Senator Neville Bonner represented the Indigenous populace of Australia, and helped to change the face of Aboriginal rights. He was always an honest, benevolent and humane man, who never let his temper or anger dictate or overshadow his disposition.    Neville was remarried in 1972 to Heather Ryan, who worked beside him for many years and is still his fiercest supporter. Neville Bonner continued to speak out on the issues which divided the black and white populace of Australia. But in 1998, just before the Constitutional Convention, Neville announced that he was dying of a cancer of the lung, but even through this, he pledged to continue working in the Australian parliament. Neville Bonner died of lung cancer at Ipswich, Queensland on February the 5th, 1999. He was seventy-six years of age when he died. His surviving relatives; most of which are still alive, are his second wife; Heather, four of his five sons and several stepchildren. All of them still support his ideas and ways of teaching to this very day.  Neville Bonners sole greatest achievement was becoming the first Indigenous Member of Parliament. He was also the first Aboriginal person to actually sit in federal parliament. He was the Queensland president for O.P.A.L (One People of Australia League) in 1970. He was also named Australian of the year in 1979, alongside naturalist Harry Butler. He was, however, deselected from the senator party. He was shortly thereafter appointed into the board of directors for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (A.B.C) in 1983. He was a member of the Griffin University Council from 1992 through to 1996. During this time, he was congratulated with an honorary doctorate in 1993. In 1998, he became a candidate for the Constitutional Convention. But unfortunately, he died of lung cancer in 1999. Bibliography http://www.abc.net.au/schoolstv/australians/bonner.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neville_Bonner http://www.indigenousrights.net.au/person.asp?pID=958 http://www.dinkumaussies.com/..%2FABORIGINAL%2FNeville%20Bonner.htm http://www.biographybase.com/biography/Bonner_Neville.html