Lessons from Our Failure to Build a Constitutional Bridge in the 2023 Referendum

'This book provides the practical pointers for hope if we are ever to achieve constitutional recognition of my people. It addresses the mistakes of the 2023 referendum so that we can all learn and regroup. It's a "must read".' - John Lochowiak, Chairperson of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council



The 2023 referendum was a disaster. After the 40:60 defeat, the key Indigenous leaders said: 'It is clear no reform of the Constitution that includes our peoples will ever succeed. This is the bitter lesson from 14 October.' Many Australians believe that there is still hope. There may be a prospect of future constitutional change but not with the process that was adopted and not with the wording that was proposed in 2023. It's time to begin the conversation about past mistakes, before we all start forgetting what went on.



The major challenge for the country in the future will be according First Australians agency and self-determination while remaining true to the undoubted rules for constitutional change. Indigenous leaders will not accept minimal symbolic change to the Constitution. It will be necessary to find that sweet spot of substantive change acceptable to most members of the Commonwealth Parliament. This book highlights the mistakes of 2023 and points a way forward in hope. Good process can yield good policy, which can produce good politics, which might then result in a popular positive referendum result. 



Frank Brennan was a member of the Calma/Langton committee that guided the Co-Design process to develop options for an Indigenous voice to parliament. He has previously published three books on Indigenous constitutional recognition: Sharing the Country (Penguin Books, two editions, 1992 and 1994); No Small Change: The Road to Recognition for Indigenous Australia (University of Queensland Press, 2015); and An Indigenous Voice to Parliament: Considering a Constitutional Bridge (Garratt Publishing, 2023, three editions). During the 2023 referendum campaign, he addressed many public meetings and worked closely with the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council.