Aboriginal Housing Company remembers former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam AC, QC
MEDIA RELEASE 21 October 2014 The Aboriginal Housing Company today honoured the memory of former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam AC, QC.
AHC CEO Michael. Mundine said Mr Whitlam’s death was a reminder of the great steps made towards the empowerment of Aboriginal people, land rights and racial equality in the 1970s.
“Today we remember that it was Gough Whitlam who provided the original seed funding of $500,000 to the AHC, which made our first project possible,” Mr Mundine said.
“The vision we had back in the 70s is the same vision we share today. We were set up in direct response to discrimination against Aboriginal people in the rental market and to this day we exist only to provide affordable housing to our community.
“We remain absolutely committed to that vision, to creating affordable housing, and to making things different for the next generation.” Mr Mundine said the Whitlam Government represented a different era in Australian politics, when government was willing to listen, to work with Aboriginal people on social projects, and to actively address inequality.
“We don’t operate in the same environment now. I hope other governments look at Gough Whitlam’s legacy and learn from it because there is still so much to do, Mr Mundine said
The AHC is an independent non-profit charity and one of the first community housing providers in Australia. Incorporated in 1973, it is a company limited by guarantee.
AHC is an all-Aboriginal governed organisation in Redfern, which lies in the traditional lands of the Gadigal People part of the Eora Nation. Today AHC provides homes in 41 properties in Sydney and regional NSW.
