Background

In early 2020, Professor Kate Senior made a surprising discovery in the University of Newcastle’s Copley Archive. The archive consisted of newspaper clippings about Dexter Daniels collected by 1960s Newcastle unionists and activists, Merv and Janet Copley. The clippings spoke of Daniels’ speaking tours and participation in land rights rallies in the Australian southern states. These clippings were boxed and remained sealed until Professor Senior dusted them off and re-opened them.

Professor Senior first heard of Dexter Daniels in 1999 through her anthropological work at Ngukurr where she began her PhD and stayed, working with the Daniel’s family for over 25 years. One of the first things she did, was to attend a funeral, of an “old man” with her new colleague Dr Daniels. That unnamed old man was Dexter Daniels. No-one talked about him, as was usual at that time, and he was buried in an unmarked grave. The story that emerged from the archive enriched their understanding of Daniels’ work outside his home state. What was surprising to them, was Daniels’ strong association and support from the trade unions, particularly those in Newcastle, who raised money to support him and encouraged their members to recognise and engage with the Indigenous Australians’ struggles.

This serendipitous finding presented opportunities to work in collaboration with Ngukurr by bringing this material back to the community, so that Dr Daniels could properly honour the memory of her uncle. Local linkages with Newcastle school students, trade unions and University of Newcastle historians and creatives have also provided opportunities for the acquisition of ongoing, competitive funding.

A B&W photograph of an Aboriginal man in a suit speaking into a microphone,addressing an audience of students sitting on the lawn