Evelyn Scott (activist)

Evelyn Ruth Scott AO (1935 – 21 September 2017) was an Indigenous Australian social activist and educator.

Dr

Evelyn Scott

AO
Born
Evelyn Ruth Backo

1935
Ingham, Queensland
Died21 September 2017(2017-09-21) (aged 81–82)
North Queensland
PartnerAllen Scott

She began working in the Townsville Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advancement League in the 1960s. She was actively involved in campaigning for the 1967 Constitutional Referendum.[1][2][3]

In 1971, she joined the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders (FCAATSI) executive as a vice-president. She was a leader in the transformation of FCAATSI into an Indigenous-controlled organisation in 1973, with the support of Josie Briggs. She was active in the first national women's organisation, the National Aboriginal and Islander Council, formed in the early 1970s.[1][2]

She became Chair of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation (CAR) in the late 1990s, at a challenging time when the federal government led by John Howard was cutting reconciliation funding.[1][3]

Scott was inducted onto the Victorian Honour Roll of Women in 2001[4] and received the Centenary Medal in the same year.[5] She was appointed Officer of the Order of Australia in the 2003 Australia Day Honours.[6]

Scott was the mother of rugby league player Sam Backo.[7]

Evelyn Scott School, in the Australian Capital Territory, was started in 2021.[8]

Later life

In 2015, Scott was a resident in a care facility in Cairns.[9] Scott died on 21 September 2017 aged 81.[10] On 2 October 2017, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced that a state funeral for Scott would be held in Townsville.[11] On 6 October 2017, the state funeral was held at the Townsville Stadium and was attended by Premier Palaszczuk, Leeanne Enoch (the first Indigenous woman to serve as a minister in a Queensland Government) and many Indigenous community leaders. Senator Pat Dodson delivered a eulogy which described Scott's leading role in the 1967 referendum to recognise Indigenous Australians.[12][13] Scott was the first Indigenous woman to receive a Queensland state funeral.[14]

References
  1. "Evelyn Scott". National Museum of Australia. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  2. "20 inspiring black women who have changed Australia". SBS. Archived from the original on 12 June 2016.
  3. "From Dispossession to Reconciliation". Parliamentary Library. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  4. "VICTORIAN HONOUR ROLL OF WOMEN: List of Inductees 2001 to 2011" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 March 2019.
  5. "Dr Evelyn Ruth Scott". It's an Honour. 1 January 2001. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  6. "Dr Evelyn Ruth Scott". It's an Honour. 26 January 2003. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  7. Gordon, Michael (27 May 2017). "Indigenous recognition: Sam Backo and the long road to a level playing field". Archived from the original on 21 September 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2017 – via The Sydney Morning Herald.
  8. Lansdown, Sarah (28 January 2021). "Evelyn Scott School in Denman Prospect is a principal's dream". Retrieved 30 July 2021 – via The Canberra Times.
  9. Matt Alison (10 July 2015). "Reconciliation: Dr Evelyn Scott's lifelong passion". Archived from the original on 5 October 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  10. Corowa, Miriam (21 September 2017). "Dr Evelyn Scott, Indigenous rights activist and 'trailblazer', dies aged 81". ABC. Archived from the original on 21 September 2017. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
  11. Palaszczuk, Annastacia (2 October 2017). "The late Dr Evelyn Scott AO". The Queensland Cabinet and Ministerial Directory. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 5 October 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  12. Abraham, Rhea (6 October 2017). "Indigenous activist Evelyn Scott hailed as key freedom fighter at state funeral in Townsville". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
  13. Bennett, Adam (6 October 2017). "Queensland Indigenous activist Evelyn Scott remembered at state funeral". The Age. Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
  14. Grace-Curran, Olivia (7 October 2017). "Social justice trailblazer laid to rest". Townsville Bulletin. Retrieved 7 October 2017.


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