the voice to parliament handbook review

The Voice to Parliament Handbook: All the Detail You Need

Thomas mayo , kerry o'brien , cathy wilcox  ( illustrator ).

104 pages, ebook

First published May 17, 2023

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Thomas Mayo

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FROM THE CURRENT CONSTITUTION:

129. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia: (i) there shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice; ‘(This sections establishes the requirement for the Parliament to set up the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.)’ (ii) the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice may make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; ‘(This section establishes that the Voice may express its views to the Parliament and government about Indigenous issues with no right to veto.)’ (iii) the Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws with respect to matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures. ‘(This section gives the Parliament the power to make laws relating to the Voice, including how its representations are treated. It provides the flexibility for the Voice to improve with the needs of the people, as all institutions should do. The laws that Parliament makes about the Voice are matters relating to Indigenous peoples, so any changes will be subject to the Voice’s advice.)’ ”

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Jul 3 THE VOICE TO PARLIAMENT HANDBOOK by Thomas Mayo and Kerry O'Brien

As many will know, later in 2023 Australia will hold a referendum to determine whether our Constitution should provide for a Voice to Parliament, representing Australia’s First Nation Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. This is a campaign I am passionately supportive of.

I was recently lucky enough to listen to a talk by the authors of The Voice To Parliament Handbook , Thomas Mayo and Kerry O’Brien. Mayo is a First Nations man who is a signatory of the Uluṟu Statement of the Heart, and O’Brien a respected journalist and broadcaster of more than 50 years at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC - Australia’a public broadcaster). I had a copy of the book and have read it, and was lucky to have them both sign it. I also snagged a quick selfie with Thomas, as we have been “connected” on several social media platforms for many years.

The Handbook is a fantastic resource - less than 100 pages long, it discusses how the Referendum came into being, predominantly through dialogues conducted throughout Australia with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, on what Constitutional Recognition might look like. The overwhelming majority of those people said they wanted proper representation, truth telling and formalised treaty. Australia is the only Commonwealth country that doesn’t have a formalised treaty with its First Nations people, to our great shame.

The result of those dialogues, led by Professor Megan Davis, Aunty Pat Anderson and Noel Pearson, was the Uluṟu Statement of the Hear t, which people can and should read here .

Part of that Statement was an invitation to all Australians to walk WITH Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people toward reconciliation, through a three pronged approach: a Voice to Parliament, Treaty and Makkarata - a truth telling process.

The Handbook talks through what the Voice to Parliament is, and what it is not. It is a body of elected people from communities across Australia who will provide advice to the Parliament about proposed legislation that directly impacts First Nations people. We have had iterations of these advisory bodies before, but they’ve been scrapped by conservative governments who have not wanted to fund or listen to Indigenous voices - primarily because those voices were saying things conservative politicians didn’t like or agree with. the difference this time is that the Voice is enshrined in the Constitution, meaning it cannot be disbanded based on political whims. It is NOT a body which will veto governments or parliaments - it is advisory only. It will not have a say on every piece of legislation before the parliament - only those which fall under the power of the federal government to make laws for Aboriginal people that is also enshrined in the Constitution. The Voice to Parliament will not, for example, be advising on general matters like taxation or transport.

The Handbook addresses all the questions people have and provides really clear answers. That’s what makes it a great book - it sets out the arguments supporting the Voice clearly, acknowledging that there are legitimate questions that people might have, and answering the concerns those disinclined to support the referendum have. There will be some people will vote no, regardless of the sensible reasons to vote Yes. It is also true that there is not unanimous support for the Voice in Aboriginal communities - after all, they are humans who can think for themselves and many would like to see treaty come first. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are not monolithic - they of course cover a wide diaspora of opinions themselves, and they have the right to their views, even if I disagree with some of those. However, the vast majority of mob DO support the Voice To Parliament too, and I truly believe it is a promising step forward in what is a long process to come.

Hopefully, once the Voice is established, the next step will be a a federal move towards treaty and truth telling, as they are essential cogs in the wheel of progress - but ones I don’t believe governments will take without the Voice in place first and in such a manner that, in the event of a change of government, cannot be simply tossed aside.

At less than $20.00, this is a book you cannot afford to NOT read, before the vote in late 2023. I highly commend it to you, as you make your decision.

Jul 5 CLEOPATRA AND FRANKENSTEIN by Coco Mellors

Jul 2 LOVE OBJECTS by Emily Maguire

MEGAN DAVIS Voice of Reason: On Recognition and Renewal; THOMAS MAYO and KERRY O’BRIEN The Voice to Parliament Handbook. Reviewed by Braham Dabscheck

by NRB | 18 Jul 2023 | Non-fiction | 0 comments

Two new books explore the issues behind the forthcoming referendum to create a Voice to Parliament for First Nations Australians.

Later this year we will be asked to participate in a referendum to alter the Australian Constitution to include the following (Section 129):

In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia: i. There shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice; ii. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice may make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; iii. The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws with respect to matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures.

Both these books provide background information on the referendum proposal and why their authors believe it should be supported. They argue that the inclusion of this Section into the Australian Constitution will help to overcome the wrongs of the past inflicted on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people associated with White colonialism. These include the stealing of lands, the frontier wars, murder, rape, the breaking up of families and the stolen generations, slavery, discrimination, high incarceration rates, and denial of justice and due process. Both books see the referendum as an important step in enhancing reconciliation between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and others who call Australia home.

Megan Davis is Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of New South Wales. She served for 12 years as the chair of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. She does not regard herself as a lawyer ‘who has ever been fully interested in theory … I was more interested in the practical application of the law, where the law gave rise to problems and how to fix those problems’. Davis has devoted her life and career to fixing problems associated with discrimination and disempowerment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. She is interested in bringing about real ‘practical applications’ and eschews what she describes as ‘regulatory ritualism’.

Acknowledgements of Country and an endless parade of posters and water bottles and wristbands … are supposed to indicate connection and deep engagement. But the power imbalance remains … Ritualism permits street-level bureaucrats and the many government stakeholders who gorge from the billion-dollar taxpayer trough to do the things that denote social consensus on Indigenous policy … while masking their inaction on the things needed to secure the agreed goals.

For the last two decades Davis has been involved in many forums, both with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (including the development of the Uluru Statement from the Heart), and with politicians and bureaucrats in the creation of the referendum proposal. She provides valuable information on these interactions and the rationales for various decisions that have been made. For her, the major attraction of the Voice is to provide local communities with the means to address issues important to them.

The major argument for the referendum developed by Davis, and also by Mayo and O’Brien, is that since the arrival of the British in 1788, politicians, governments and bureaucracies have failed to engage with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people when they make decisions which impact them. Davis notes how:

… politicians meet with Aboriginal leaders on a myriad of issues, but often First Nations do not feel heard and politicians and advisers do not listen … [What] is the impact of telling your story over and over again and not being heard – what effect does this have on health and wellbeing?

She considers the Voice to be a mechanism that can turn this around. It is only by having such a provision in the Constitution, something that cannot be changed by a government antagonistic to the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people (as occurred when the Howard government abolished the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission in 2005) that the voices of Indigenous Australians will be heard.

Davis’s examination of decisions made by politicians and bureaucrats provides greater insight into the need for the Voice. The first concerns how, in 1963, Aboriginal people ‘were removed at gunpoint from their homes at Old Mapoon … by Queensland police in the dead of the night with no notice. No one was told. No one was consulted.’ In 2016, she was approached by the New South Wales government to conduct a review of Aboriginal children in out-of-home care. What she found was:

… blundering and unskilled conduct by case workers … how can it be that the dominant narrative positions Aboriginal parents as the problem? … removal documents prepared for court did not match the case files. There were many failures by the department or the courts to scrutinise or check the veracity of case workers’ claims … case workers regularly lied to the court … The child protection system I reviewed, and overall, lacks transparency and appropriate oversight … There is no genuine consultation with the Aboriginal family or community … the workforce has no professional accountability.

If nothing else, these examples demonstrate why ‘Executive Government’ is included in the referendum proposal. Davis says:

The executive power is included in the provision because the most unaccountable group in the system with the most power over the day-to-day lives of First Nations people is the bureaucracy.

In 2014, the Abbott government announced an Indigenous Advancement Strategy (IAS), with the result, Davis says, that $534 million was stripped from the Indigenous Affairs budget.

Communities said there was no consultation … There was no review of programs and activities to determine what worked and what did not work … this extraordinary policy … took a razor to programs that had been run for decades including men’s groups and the award-winning night patrols that protect women and children from violence … The process for reapplying for funding was unwieldy … Well-resourced not-for-profit organisations, NGOs and corporations were competing with communities for the same money … The allocation of funding to non-Indigenous organisations was particularly galling because the Aboriginal sector … has been devastated by the IAS. Many organisations shut down or were forced to let staff go. The audit office found that the funding decisions made by the department did not reflect need and lacked transparency.

In addition, Davis reported that the relevant government minister had used funds, ostensibly earmarked for Aboriginal advancement, to fight Aboriginal land rights claims.

Part of the ‘No’ case against the Voice is that it is just another device to provide Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with additional benefits – a sword, if you like. A not-too-close reading of Davis reveals this is incorrect. In her hands the Voice is a shield to protect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from attacks by ill-informed and non-consulting politicians and bureaucrats. Alternatively, the Voice can be seen as a lifeboat to preserve their welfare, their very lives. In addition, the Voice can also be seen as a more cost effective and efficient means of allocating resources to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. And, of course, there is the moral role of the Voice in helping Australia come to terms with the wrongs of the past; the wrongs that ‘New Australians’ inflicted on the original inhabitants.

Thomas Mayo is a Kaurareg Aboriginal and Kalkalgal, Erubamle Torres Strait Islander man. He is also an official of the Maritime Union of Australia based in the Northern Territory. In recent years he has been a leading spokesperson on behalf of the Voice. Kerry O’Brien is a journalist who is probably best remembered for his longstanding work with the ABC. They decided to work together to produce the Handbook with the aim ‘that this book will become a useful tool when you’re considering how you will vote and in your discussions with family, friends and colleagues’. The Handbook is divided into chapters, some authored separately and others written together. There is also a short chapter co-authored by Professor Fiona Stanley, a pediatrician from the University of Western Australia who was named Australian of the Year in 2003, and Professor Marcia Langton, an anthropologist at the University of Melbourne. The Handbook is enlivened with illustrations by cartoonist Cathy Wilcox.

The Handbook begins with both Mayo and O’Brien explaining why they support the Voice. Mayo says he does not want to:

… pass on the burdens of our colonial past, nor a constitutional ignorance of our Indigenous heritage to our children … constitutional change is as close as we can get to lasting progress. For my children, I want progress that cannot be removed by a shift in policy. I want a Voice that cannot be repealed by a government that is avoiding responsibility.

O’Brien sees the Voice as a means to right ‘many ingrained wrongs’ of the past. He also points to how many reforms and programs ostensibly designed to enhance the lives of Indigenous people have failed because they were ‘written and implemented from Canberra by non-Indigenous politicians and bureaucrats, without listening to the people they’re supposed to be helping’.

Following this, the Handbook provides historical information on attempts by different generations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait leaders to get politicians and governments to attend to the problems of their people. It also provides a history of referenda in Australia – only eight of the 44 held since Federation have been successful, the last three in 1977. The 1967 referendum repealed Section 127 of the Australian Constitution (thereby ceasing the practice of not counting ‘Aboriginal natives’ as part of the Commonwealth or the states), and Section 51, placitum xxvi, where responsibility ‘for persons of the aboriginal race’, which had been a state matter, was transferred to the Commonwealth, in line with the treatment of everyone else.

There is a checklist of various issues associated with the Voice, including its likely structure if the referendum is successful, and the chapter by Stanley and Langton provides examples of where ‘listening’ has been successful, such as the response to COVID, Aboriginal birthing practices, youth justice and Koori Courts. The book concludes with advice on how to engage others in discussing the Voice, and suggestions for further reading.

It might not be unreasonable to suggest that most Australians lack knowledge concerning the nature of referenda, the background to this particular referendum and the history and treatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The great strength of these two books is that they help to fill these gaps. Mayo and O’Brien’s Handbook provides a useful introductory guide to the issues, while Megan Davis’s Voice of Reason: On Recognition and Renewal is a more substantial and more nuanced unravelling of the long and winding path to the Voice. Both books will enhance the knowledge of readers in reaching their decision on this proposed change to the Australian Constitution later this year.

Megan Davis Voice of Reason: On Recognition and Renewal Quarterly Essay 90, Black Inc 2023 PB 160pp $27.99

Thomas Mayo and Kerry O’Brien (cartoons by Cathy Wilcox ) The Voice to Parliament Handbook: All the detail you need Hardie Grant Explore 2023 PB 112pp $16.99.

Braham Dabscheck is a Senior Fellow at the Melbourne Law School at Melbourne University who writes on industrial relations, sport and other things.

You can buy Megan Davis’s Voice of Reason from Abbey’s at a 10% discount by quoting the promotion code NEWTOWNREVIEW or you can buy it from Booktopia .

You can buy Thomas Mayo and Kerry O’Brien’s The Voice to Parliament Handbook from Abbey’s at a 10% discount by quoting the promotion code NEWTOWNREVIEW or you can buy it from Booktopia .

You can also check if these books are available from Newtown Library .

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Book review: the voice to parliament handbook.

Thomas Mayo and Kerry O'Brien's The Voice to Parliament Handbook is a clear and informative look at how the Voice to Parliament may address 'many ingrained wrongs'. Xavier Donovan takes a look at how this book helps to inform the debate.

THE VOICE TO PARLIAMENT is a proposed constitutional amendment in Australia aimed at providing permanent representation for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples within the Constitution. It's designed to give these communities input into governmental decisions, policies, and laws that impact them.

Thomas Mayo and Kerry O'Brien 's The Voice to Parliament Handbook is a relatively easy-to-digest outline of how and why the Voice to Parliament referendum should be implemented. The combination of an Indigenous and non-Indigenous author allows for a relatable and well-rounded perspective on matters involving the Voice to Parliament.

As a First Nations leader, Mayo provides valuable insight into the Voice. Thomas Mayo is a Kaurareg Aboriginal and Kalkalgal, Erubamle Torres Strait Islander man, union official, and advocate for a constitutionally enshrined Voice. He's authored four books involving Indigenous themes, contributes to various publications and serves in multiple advisory roles within diversity councils and labour networks.

Mayo sets the tone of the book immediately in the preface by detailing the creation of the Uluru Statement from the Heart - a petition formed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders, to which he is a signatory, which spurred the Australian Government into calling the Voice to Parliament Referendum .

Through this, he motivates readers by proving that progress can be made towards bridging the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. However, he also emphasises how societal improvements can only take effect if enough people come together and support change - an aspect which is integral to the implementation of the Voice.

Mayo also dedicates an entire chapter to discussing how important conversations are to the Voice's execution. He illustrates how the average Australian can do much more to support the Voice than simply voting 'Yes', by beginning a dialogue with their own inner circle. This section is really powerful as it highlights the influence each and every individual has on this nation's future.

Unlike Mayo, Kerry O'Brien is not an Indigenous Australian. Although his contribution may lack authenticity in that regard, his credibility lies in his experiences as a journalist reporting in Aboriginal communities - a point O'Brien makes in the opening chapters. A distinguished Australian journalist, O'Brien's career spans many years as a television presenter and interviewer. Specialising in politics, economics and investigative reporting, O'Brien has written two books and worked extensively in public broadcasting, including hosting renowned programs such as Four Corners, The 7.30 Report and Lateline.

In the second chapter, O'Brien gives a historical summation of Indigenous struggles in Australia - information which is key to understanding the significance of the Voice. Through this, he illustrates the critical necessity for First Nations representation in parliament, thus providing context to readers who may question the essentiality of the Voice.

The FAQ section may be considered the most vital chapter in The Voice to Parliament Handbook. Not only does it summarise the main points from other chapters, but it discusses and offers counters to common arguments against the implementation of the Voice.

Overall, this book is a highly informative read. It remains simple yet still covers all relevant material needed for anyone who is trying to make an educated decision when voting on the proposed Indigenous Voice to Parliament.

The Voice to Parliament Handbook is available from Amazon for $12 (paperback) RRP

You can follow assistant editor Xavier Donovan on Twitter @xavierddddd . Follow Independent Australia on Twitter at @independentaus , on Facebook HERE and on Instagram HERE .

Related Articles

• CARTOONS: Mark David is rolling in the deep
• The Voice will enrich democracy says Solicitor-General: Dutton says 'No'
• Indigenous Voice vital to Closing the Gap
• Climate of contention clouds Voice Referendum
• You're the Voice! At least try and understand it?

Independent Australia 21st July 2023, 09:52 GMT+10

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Book Review - The Voice to Parliament Handbook

Jun 14, 2023

The Voice to Parliament Handbook by Thomas Mayo & Kerry O’Brien. Cover Image: Hardie Grant Publishing/ Background: canva.com

The book begins with the text of The Uluru Statement from the Heart, followed by a two-page description of how it was created. Then, the two authors respond to the question: What does the Voice mean to me?

The Table of Contents lists seven chapters and includes the names of the authors of each chapter. Cathy Wilcox , a cartoonist for daily newspapers in both Melbourne and Sydney, provides a cartoon before each chapter. There are also a few poster-like summaries of aspects of the proposed Voice. Two Indigenous leaders, Professor Fiona Stanley AC and Professor Marcia Langton AO , not acknowledged on the book cover as authors, wrote Chapter 6.  Then follow Endnotes, Further reading, Appendix 1, Referendum Working Group, Appendix 2, Referendum Engagement Group, and information about the four authors.

A passage in Thomas Mayo’s contribution seems to say quite a lot about how Indigenous Australians felt about the rest of this nation: “To reach the consensus position, we suspended our disbelief that this modern nation could agree to meaningful constitutional change. After many days of discussion and debate, a great majority of the delegates chose unity and hope”. Similarly, Kerry O’Brien stated a core truth at the heart of our country’s negative attitude to its First Peoples: “One key reason why Indigenous policy has failed so fundamentally at times is because it has been written and implemented from Canberra by non-Indigenous politicians and bureaucrats, without listening to the people they’re supposed to be helping”.

Then follows a rationale for seeking the Voice to Parliament, namely that: “The people most affected by the policies and laws passed by parliament would choose who will give advice on their behalf. Not the politicians. … It comes down to a question about fairness and acceptance.”

Kerry O’Brien outlines the history of the Indigenous push for participation in how they were governed by the Federal and State parliaments of Australia from federation of the states in 1901, marking the official founding of what is today called Australia. The Indigenous had no say in writing Australia’s Constitution and were written out of it. They did not receive full official recognition as citizens until the referendum of 1967, recognised as the most resounding ‘Yes’ vote in 122 years.

Racial discrimination continued despite some progress, but the struggle for a say in how governments help to address specifically Indigenous issues continued. There have been a variety of government forays into Indigenous affairs over subsequent years but they continued to live on the margins, enduring much social discrimination and having no guaranteed and effective way of being at the heart of government attempts to address their specific issues. They needed and sought an effective and enduring voice to Parliament. If it were simply legislated, any laws could be overturned or adversely modified by a subsequent government, and so, the request for a structured and enduring Voice to Parliament and Executive Government to be included in the National Constitution, which can only be modified via a national referendum. “With its continuity guaranteed in the Constitution, the Voice would be able to mature and evolve as an effective part of the ongoing drive to close the gap on the inequities built into Australian society over 235 years” (page 40).

White supremacy has been at the core of Australian society since colonisation began. Colonisers depicted local peoples as racially inferior. Post-colony Australian parliaments at the state and national levels waxed and waned as regards due recognition and support for Indigenous Peoples. The hope of the forthcoming referendum is that the Voice be embedded in the Constitution and so ensure continuity of access to the Federal Parliament and Executive Government. A successful referendum would protect the principle that Indigenous Peoples are recognised and consulted.

The book also offers evidence to the effect that having a Voice – a say in how government might design and implement programs to help face the issues and programmes that affect them – makes a huge difference towards improving daily life for First Nations people, from the time of birth onwards.

Thomas Mayo offers 11 suggestions about how we might help the ‘Yes’ campaign get over the line. The 7 th suggestion struck me: Keep in mind that people are unlikely to change their views if you seek to ‘correct’ them, regardless of how much they like and respect you. Hear them out and use logic, commonsense and your own story to explain why you will vote ‘Yes’ and why they might vote ‘Yes’ too.

Columban Fr Peter Woodruff lives and works in Australia.

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Comments (3)

R. Fitzgerald: Jun 16, 2023 at 03:31 PM

Not everyone is convinced that the proposed amendment to the Constitution to give effect to 'The Voice' will live up to the expectations of the Uluru Statement. Several people, including Aboriginal people, have expressed doubts about the presumed benefits, not least to those living in remote communities. At present we have only sparse details of how 'the Voice' will operate in practice. In the absence of these details the risk of unintended detrimental consequences is of serious concern to many. Before deciding how to vote we need to make sure we are fully informed about what specifically we are voting for and why.

Trevor Armstrong: Jul 06, 2023 at 02:17 PM

Why can't our PM be honest. The voice is step one, a treaty is step two and the core of the treaty will be sovereignty. There cannot be two sovereign authorities so is it Parliament or is it what??

Christopher Panizza: Aug 26, 2023 at 02:31 PM

Treaty making primarily involves land. Land is controlled by the States. All states are currently involved in what may be described as "Treaty Making" though not necessarily by that name. One of the most comprehensive of such settlements is the South West Native Title Settlement in Western Australia under the Barnett Government. There is no separate sovereignty in the sense suggested by Mr Armstrong.

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The Voice to Parliament Handbook: All the Detail You Need

By kerry o’brien.

‘We invite you to walk with us in a movement of the Australian people for a better future.’  These words from the Uluru Statement from the Heart are a heartfelt invitation from First Nations People to fellow Australians, who will have the opportunity to respond when the Voice referendum is put to a national vote by the Albanese Government.   Indigenous leader Thomas Mayo and acclaimed journalist Kerry O’Brien have written this handbook to answer the most commonly asked questions about why the Voice should be enshrined in the Constitution, and how it might function to improve policies affecting Indigenous communities, and genuinely close the gap on inequalities at the most basic level of human dignity.   A handy tool for people inclined to support a ‘yes’ vote in the referendum,  The Voice to Parliament Handbook  reflects on this historic opportunity for genuine reconciliation, to right the wrongs and heal the ruptured soul of a nation. This guide offers simple explanations, useful anecdotes, historic analogies and visual representations, so you can share it among friends, family and community networks in the build-up to the referendum.   If the ‘yes’ vote is successful this book will also become a keepsake of an important and emotional milestone in Australia’s history.

• Politics & Social Sciences > Social Sciences > Ethnic Studies > Indigenous Peoples Studies
• Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Political Science > Constitutions
• Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > International & World Politics > Australian & Oceanian Politics

Publication date

• May 17, 2023

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The Voice to Parliament Handbook: All the Detail You Need

The Voice to Parliament Handbook: All the Detail You Need - is backordered and will ship as soon as it is back in stock.

The Voice to Parliament Handbook is an easy-to-follow guide for the millions of Australians who have expressed support for the Uluru Statement from the Heart, but want to better understand what a Voice to Parliament actually means.

About the authors and illustrator:

Thomas Mayo is a Torres Strait Islander man born on Larrakia country in Darwin (NT). Kerry O’Brien is one of Australia’s most respected journalists with six Walkley Awards including the Gold Walkley and the Walkley for outstanding leadership.

Cathy Wilcox has been drawing cartoons since she was old enough to scratch the furniture.  She has churned out cartoons for the Sydney Morning Herald  almost daily since 1989.

Product details:

Authors: Thomas Mayo and Kerry O‘Brien

Illustrator: Cathy Wilcox

Publisher: Hardie Grant Explore

Dimensions: 135 x 210 mm

Format: Paperback

Publication date: 17 May 2023

ISBN: 9781741178869

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