Topic

History

This topic focuses on Australian social movement history. There is so much to learn from the stories of past collective action for social and ecological justice. Learning social movement history can provide insights about strategy, a vast toolbox of potential tactics, and abundant inspiration.

A poster with details of an event at which Marisa Holmes spoke in 2024.

Lessons from Occupy Wall Street

Listen to an interview with Marisa Holmes about her experiences of the Occupy Wall Street moment in terms of what worked, and what didn’t, as well as lessons to be drawn for the future.

Watch Inspiring Activist and Protest Speeches

Watch Inspiring Activist and Protest Speeches by Harvey Milk, Nelson Mandela, Greta Thunberg, Malala Yousafzai, Emma Gonzalez and more.

The Long History of Protest Camps

Learn about the history of protest camps and how people have not only imagined but also practically built alternative worlds together.

Organizing Occupy Wall Street: This is Just Practice

Read a reflection and lessons learned from Marisa Holme’s 2023 book, Organizing Occupy Wall Street: This is Just Practice.

A sign board on a street in Atlanta with people riding past on bicycles. On the board is a black and white photo of a woman called Ella Baker. On the board it reads '"Legendary leader Ella Baker moved to Atlanta in 1957 to help form the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with Bayard Rastin and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She departed from the organization in 1960 and devoted herself to the student-led organization, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. (Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division, NAACP Papers.)'.

Building Movement Capacity and Structure: Ella Baker and the Civil Rights Movement

Take inspiration from this Civil Rights Movement story about how to build movement capacity and structure. Learn about Ella Baker and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee SNCC.

Book cover reading United We Stand: Class Struggle in Colonial Australia with an image of unionists marching.

Rebels In The Workforce: Women Worker’s Resistance in the Nineteenth Century

Read a book excerpt from United We Stand: Class Struggle in Colonial Australia which discusses women’s resistance to workplace exploitation.

Australia’s History of Workers’ Rights, Strikes and Campaigns

Learn about the history of Australian workers rights, strikes & campaigns from resources at the Australian Trade Union Institute ATUI Library.

Black and white photo of a large group of women suffragists. There is a prominent woman with a hat and a sash sitting in front of a large banner. The banner reads 'National Union And Womens Suffrage Societies. President Mrs Fawcett, Law abiding Suffragist.' Text at the bottom of the photo reads 'Millicent Fawcett, Hyde Park, July 1913.' There are trees in the background.

Essential Elements for Turning a Cause into a Movement: Lessons from the Suffrage Struggle for Today’s Activists

3 essential elements activists today can learn from the women’s suffrage movement of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Women and Leadership in the Environmental Movement (Commons Conversations Podcast)

Listen to an inspiring podcast about women & leadership in the Australian environment movement with Judy Lambert & Victoria McKenzie-McHarg.

Campaigns that Changed Tasmania

A collection of campaigns that changed Tasmania e.g. Franklin River, gay law reform, forest blockading, No Gas Across the Bass.

Campaigns that Changed the Northern Territory

A collection of campaigns that changed the Northern Territory. e.g. Wave Hill Walk Off, Jabiluka, Pine Gap & Anti-Fracking.

Campaigns that Changed Western Australia

A collection of campaigns that changed Western Australia. e.g. James Price Point, Ningaloo, whaling, forest and other people and places.

Movement Moments: Telling Australian Stories (Videos)

These videos focus on “movement moments” – events during which Australian activists pushed forward issues & created conditions for social change.

Cover of Knocking The Top Off: A People's History of Alcohol in Australia

Jean Young, Kath Williams and the Fight for Equal Pay

Read an excerpt from the book Knocking The Top Off: A People’s History of Alcohol in Australia about the fight for equal pay.

Activism and Campaign History: Start Here

Activism and Campaign history – A range of resources about the history of First Nations, social and labour movements in Australia and beyond.

Human rights protesters, one in a skeleton suit wearing a military hat and one with the words "My Business is Making a Killing in Chile" on their back.

Grevillea: Creative Interventions in Western Australia during the 1990s

An interview with a member of the Western Australia-based Grevillea about how the group applied a dynamic and creative perspective to approaching issues such as militarism, pollution and international solidarity during the 1980s and 1990s.