Historical Organization
Australian Parliament
Australian Parliament
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Organization Timeline
The Immigration Restriction Act establishes racial exclusion
📅 23 December 1901Australia enacted the Immigration Restriction Act, a central instrument of the White Australia policy. The dictation test enabled discriminatory exclusion. The event explains an institution later...
Federal voting rights expand while racial exclusions remain
📅 12 June 1902The Commonwealth Franchise Act extended federal voting rights to many women but excluded most Aboriginal people and others by racial categories, subject to exceptions. The contrast shows that a...
Federal voting reform removes racial exclusion from enrolment eligibility
📅 21 May 1962The Commonwealth Electoral Act received assent, extending the option of federal electoral enrolment to Indigenous Australians previously excluded. Some Indigenous people already held voting rights, so...
The Racial Discrimination Act receives assent
📅 11 June 1975Australia enacted its first federal law providing broad protection against racial discrimination. It addressed areas including employment, housing and access to services, drawing on the...
The Northern Territory land rights law receives assent
📅 16 December 1976The Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act established a framework for Aboriginal land ownership and claims based on traditional occupation. Land-rights organizing had made restitution a...
Australia apologizes to the Stolen Generations
📅 13 February 2008Prime Minister Kevin Rudd delivered a national parliamentary apology to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, particularly the Stolen Generations. The acknowledgment followed survivor...