John Thomas Patten (27 March 1905 – 12 October 1957) was an

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait I ...

civil rights activist and journalist.

Biography

John Patten was born in 1905 to John James Patten and Christina Mary Patten, née Middleton, at

Cummeragunja Reserve Cummeragunja Reserve or Cummeragunja Station, alternatively spelt Coomeroogunja, Coomeragunja, Cumeroogunga and Cummerguja, was a settlement on the New South Wales side of the Murray River, on the Victorian border near Barmah. It was also ref ...

, an

Aboriginal reserve An Aboriginal reserve, also called simply reserve, was a government-sanctioned settlement for Aboriginal Australians, created under various state and federal legislation. Along with missions and other institutions, they were used from the 19th c ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. Patten was educated at public schools in Tumbarumba and West Wyalong, and attended high school at West Wyalong. Following high school, Patten was unsuccessful in joining the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

and worked for the Sydney Municipal Council. To make ends meet he occasionally worked as a boxer. While boxing at Casino in 1931, Patten married Selina Avery. During the 1930s he became an experienced organiser and public speaker, speaking regularly on Aboriginal rights at the Domain on Sunday afternoons, along with other Aboriginal activists such as

Pearl Gibbs Pearl Mary (Gambanyi) Gibbs (née Brown) (18 July 1901 – 28 April 1983) was an Indigenous Australian activist, and the most prominent female activist within the Aboriginal movement in the early 20th century. She was a member of the Aborigi ...

and Tom Foster. In 1937, Patten co-founded the

Aborigines Progressive Association The Aborigines Progressive Association (APA) was an Aboriginal Australian rights organisation in New South Wales that was founded and run by William Ferguson and Jack Patten from 1937 to 1944, and was then revived from 1963 until around 1970 b ...

with William Ferguson. As President of the APA Patten organised the 1938

Day of Mourning A national day of mourning is a day or days marked by mourning and memorial activities observed among the majority of a country's populace. They are designated by the national government. Such days include those marking the death or funeral of ...

protest, and led an APA delegation to meet with

Joseph Lyons Joseph Aloysius Lyons (15 September 1879 – 7 April 1939) was an Australian politician who served as the 10th Prime Minister of Australia, in office from 1932 until his death in 1939. He began his career in the Australian Labor Party (ALP), ...

, the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

. The delegation presented Lyons with Patten and Ferguson's manifesto ''Aborigines Claim Citizenship Rights'', which included Patten's 10-point plan for citizenship rights for Aboriginal people. In April 1938, Patten established a short-lived monthly newspaper, '' The Abo Call'', the first such Aboriginal-focused publication of its kind. Due to the Depression however, it folded in September 1938 after six issues due to a shortage of funds. On 4 February 1939 Patten visited Cummeragunja at the request of his father, John Patten Snr, who was a resident on the station. Patten addressed a large gathering of the station's residents in relation to the deteriorating conditions and the intimidation to which the residents were being subjected to under the government appointed manager, Arthur McQuiggan. Patten raised the subject of

government plans for the removal of Aboriginal children and gave clarity to the station's residents regarding their rights. Patten convinced a majority of the station's residents to leave Cummeragunja, in an event which would come to be known as the

Cummeragunja walk-off The Cummeragunja walk-off in 1939 was a protest by Aboriginal Australians at the Cummeragunja Station, an Aboriginal reserve in southern New South Wales. Background The Cummeragunja Mission was mostly home to Yorta Yorta people who had been rel ...

. Patten was then arrested for "inciting Aborigines". Throughout 1939 Patten led a campaign for Aboriginal people to be able to serve in the Australian armed forces. Previously, Aboriginal people had served in every major Australian conflict, but were required to provide proof that they were of substantial non-Aboriginal ancestry. Following a successful campaign, Patten enlisted in the Australian Army, serving with the

2nd AIF The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the name given to the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initial ...

in the Middle East. He was discharged in 1942, returning home with a knee badly damaged by shrapnel.

Death

Patten died in hospital in October 1957 after being involved in a motor vehicle accident in Fitzroy in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

References

External links

Jack Patten - Australian Aboriginal Civil Rights Leader, KooriHistory.com
* ttp://www.indigenousrights.net.au/person.asp?pID=982 Collaborating for Indigenous Rights: Jack Patten

National Museum of Australia The National Museum of Australia, in the national capital Canberra, preserves and interprets Australia's social history, exploring the key issues, people and events that have shaped the nation. It was formally established by the ''National Muse ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patten, Jack 1905 births 1957 deaths Australian indigenous rights activists Australian political journalists Road incident deaths in Victoria (Australia) Australian Army personnel of World War II