In Cherbourg, Australia’s second-most disadvantaged local government area, a unifying view is that governments should listen harder to advocacy already in place.
The white superintendent ruled the Aboriginal families in this Queensland reserve’s crowded dormitories. He decided who could see who and where they would be sent for someone else’s cheap labour.Only in the 1970s was the dormitory system phased into extinction.
No one doubts that Murgon, a few minutes drive up the road, will fall heavily on the side of No. But Cherbourg, long troubled by disadvantage and dysfunction, is a more difficult study. Despite the median age being 23, Warner, 27, was one of the few young people this masthead witnessed going into the voting booths over several hours on Saturday morning.
From dozens of people canvassed at Cherbourg this week, the split between Yes and No appears to be about half and half.Everyone recognises the community’s problems – the Australian Bureau of Statistics ranks it as the nation’s second-most disadvantaged local government area – but disagree about a Voice’s effectiveness.“Our mob has not been able to have a voice – and even if they do, they’re ignored,” says Max Conlon, a Cherbourg Baptist minister and proud Yes voter.
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