Gough Whitlam on the steps of old Parliament House after the Labor Government had been sacked by the Governor General John Kerr, November 11, 1975. Photo: National Archives of Australia
By Catherine Watson
"WHERE were you when you heard that John Kerr had sacked the Whitlam Government?"
Jan Bourne’s question to a gathering of the comrades of the Wonthaggi-Bass branch of the ALP on Tuesday night – marking half a century since the Dismissal – prompted a flood of memories.
Leslie Adams was 15 and in a history class when her teacher stormed in and said “Shut up everyone! History is happening right now. You all need to remember this.” At the time, she said, she was fairly oblivious. It was only four or five years later that she realised the import of what the teacher was saying.
Margaret Williamson was secretary of the Portland branch of the ALP, in Malcolm Fraser’s electorate, when she heard the Government had been sacked. A teacher friend came in with a bottle later that afternoon and said the American teachers at her school wanted to know when the revolution was going to start. “I remember it as a time of great apprehension and sadness,” Margaret said.
While there was some mourning to be done, this was principally an evening of celebration at the Whalebone Hotel. The customary raffle for party funds featured a two-volume biography of Whitlam by Jenny Hocking, portraits of Gough and Anthony Albanese and a 10-year-old bottle of wine purchased on the 40th anniversary of the Dismissal.
Gough’s campaign song “It’s Time!” by Little Pattie and a roll call of famous names opened the floodgates. Ed Thexton proudly sported one of the original IT’S TIME badges complete with rust.
Graeme Phipps, the branch vice president, gave a potted history of the man he called “the greatest politician in Australia’s history”, ending with the scene on the steps of Parliament in which the Governor General’s secretary announced that the Labor Government had been sacked, ending the proclamation with the customary words of the time “God save the Queen”.
In unison the whole room recounted Gough’s haughty, immortal response: “WELL MAY WE SAY GOD SAVE THE QUEEN BECAUSE NOTHING WILL SAVE THE GOVERNOR GENERAL!”
Leiticia Laing recited some of the great man’s greatest quotes. In response to an anti-abortion heckler at a rally during the 1972 election campaign, "Let me make quite clear that I am for abortion and, in your case sir, we should make it retrospective!"
Asked what he would do if he met God: “I shall treat him as an equal.”
While there was some mourning to be done, this was principally an evening of celebration at the Whalebone Hotel. The customary raffle for party funds featured a two-volume biography of Whitlam by Jenny Hocking, portraits of Gough and Anthony Albanese and a 10-year-old bottle of wine purchased on the 40th anniversary of the Dismissal.
Gough’s campaign song “It’s Time!” by Little Pattie and a roll call of famous names opened the floodgates. Ed Thexton proudly sported one of the original IT’S TIME badges complete with rust.
Graeme Phipps, the branch vice president, gave a potted history of the man he called “the greatest politician in Australia’s history”, ending with the scene on the steps of Parliament in which the Governor General’s secretary announced that the Labor Government had been sacked, ending the proclamation with the customary words of the time “God save the Queen”.
In unison the whole room recounted Gough’s haughty, immortal response: “WELL MAY WE SAY GOD SAVE THE QUEEN BECAUSE NOTHING WILL SAVE THE GOVERNOR GENERAL!”
Leiticia Laing recited some of the great man’s greatest quotes. In response to an anti-abortion heckler at a rally during the 1972 election campaign, "Let me make quite clear that I am for abortion and, in your case sir, we should make it retrospective!"
Asked what he would do if he met God: “I shall treat him as an equal.”
What’s Whitlam ever done for me?
In just three years, between 1972 and 1975, the Whitlam Government introduced an extraordinary 508 pieces of legislation. These were not trivial matters but the big ones: establishing Medibank, introducing Aboriginal land rights, ending conscription, banning racial and sexual discrimination, introducing free legal aid, free university education, , no-fault divorce, equal pay for women (loud laughter in the room!) and needs-based funding for schools (more laughter).
“It was like seeing or being involved in the tail end of a comet," Jan Bourne said. "It’s hard to explain how life changing it was.”
She offered her own experience: “Six years after the Dismissal, I was newly separated with two young children. I was able to get the single mother's pension, which meant I could work part time and support myself, I was then able to go to university and to work in the newly developed field of community development for virtually my whole career. All as a result of Whitlam government initiatives."
Mary Mutsaers had a similar story. She was married with two young children. “I was able to get a BA. I had no idea I’d ever be able to do anything like that. It was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
According to Kevin Walsh, it wasn't just the material impact but the sudden opening up of Australia to new ways of thinking: “I had the benefit of a strong Catholic background full of guilt. All of a sudden there was the removal of censorship. It caused me to start questioning the restrictive practices of my faith, the Catholic church that had a dead hand on society.”
The evening ended with a video of Noel Pearson’s extraordinary eulogy of Gough – “this old man”, as he called him, with great affection and respect – at Whitlam's memorial service in 2014.
In just three years, between 1972 and 1975, the Whitlam Government introduced an extraordinary 508 pieces of legislation. These were not trivial matters but the big ones: establishing Medibank, introducing Aboriginal land rights, ending conscription, banning racial and sexual discrimination, introducing free legal aid, free university education, , no-fault divorce, equal pay for women (loud laughter in the room!) and needs-based funding for schools (more laughter).
“It was like seeing or being involved in the tail end of a comet," Jan Bourne said. "It’s hard to explain how life changing it was.”
She offered her own experience: “Six years after the Dismissal, I was newly separated with two young children. I was able to get the single mother's pension, which meant I could work part time and support myself, I was then able to go to university and to work in the newly developed field of community development for virtually my whole career. All as a result of Whitlam government initiatives."
Mary Mutsaers had a similar story. She was married with two young children. “I was able to get a BA. I had no idea I’d ever be able to do anything like that. It was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
According to Kevin Walsh, it wasn't just the material impact but the sudden opening up of Australia to new ways of thinking: “I had the benefit of a strong Catholic background full of guilt. All of a sudden there was the removal of censorship. It caused me to start questioning the restrictive practices of my faith, the Catholic church that had a dead hand on society.”
The evening ended with a video of Noel Pearson’s extraordinary eulogy of Gough – “this old man”, as he called him, with great affection and respect – at Whitlam's memorial service in 2014.
Pearson asked the question – how could a man like Whitlam, a middle-class white male who had never suffered racial discrimination, sexual discrimination or any kind of discrimination – how was it that he had the imagination to see the discrimination all around him and bring in a series of ground-breaking laws banning racial and sexual discrimination?
Pearson was mesmerising but occasionally the camera left him and flashed over the old prime ministers, to the delight of the comrades. Fraser – “BOO!” Tony Abbott – even louder “BOO!”
Pearson talked about the difference between being a managerial government, focused on re-election, and a government of reform. He ended by saying something like “Don’t lament that the Whitlam government only lasted three years. What more could they have achieved in a decade?”
It was an exhilarating performance, resonating 11 years later with the faithful at the Whalebone Hotel.
It also exposed the elephant in the room. What kind of Labor Government do we have under Anthony Albanese – a managerial government, focused on re-election, or a government of reform? The answer was plain.