Hope and Activism: Is it Difficult to Maintain Hope as an Activist?

Chris Swinbank:

Involved in anti-apartheid activism, anti-Vietnam War activism and student support for the establishment of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy, late 1960s-early 1970s

Oh I would never get depressed, the battle went on always. It was like a full-time occupation, I’m serious. In those days it was, there wouldn’t have been a week or almost a day where we didn’t do something. It was really a passion.

I wasn’t looking for press coverage, I was looking for recognition, not for us but for the cause, to get people thinking. The members of Parliament weren’t just conservative, they were reactionary, well it’s not much better today. A lot of them were very dreadful men, there were very few women in Parliament, the ones who were there were like Bronwyn Bishop. The men a lot of them were just really common, but they still are today. Bob Katter, imagine trying to convince him of anything.

I guess our aim was to bring change. I suppose there has been some change hasn’t there? The Vietnam War didn’t continue because there was so much protesting against it, not just here but everywhere around the world. Aboriginal people have got some rights now but not very many. South Africa is run by a monster so that hasn’t been a big success. Rhodesia is run by an even bigger monster, Mugabe. So the results have been mixed.