AUSTRALIAN BIOGRAPHY JACK STUDY GUIDE BRENDAN BERECRY MUNDEY SERIES 8 (1929- ) Unionist and Environmentalist

INTRODUCTION

his program is an episode of Australian Biography (Series 8) produced by the Na- tional Interest Program of Film Australia. This well-established series profi les some Tof the most extraordinary Australians of our time. Many have had a major impact on the nation’s cultural, political and social life. All are remarkable and inspiring people who have reached a stage in their lives where they can look back and refl ect. Through ISSUE 29 AUSTRALIAN SCREEN EDUCATION revealing in-depth interviews, they share their stories - of beginnings and challenges, In the 1970s he was landmarks and turning points. In so doing, they provide us with an invaluable archival record and a unique perspective on the roads we, as a country, have travelled. a leader in the fi ght

SYNOPSIS conservation campaign redefi ned the de- to preserve such velopment of Australia’s major cities. Jack Mundey became a national fi gure signifi cant sites as in the early 1970s when as Secretary of The BLF refused to work on developments the NSW Branch of the Builders’ Labour- thought to be destructive of the environ- ’s historic ers Federation (BLF), he led the union’s ment or requiring the demolition of build- famous ‘green bans’. This extraordinary ings considered part of our social heritage. Rocks area 1

ABOVE: JACK MUNDEY IN 2001 8 AUSTRALIAN BIOGRAPHY JACK MUNDEY

man to play rugby league, he joined the Communist Party.

Since then, political activism has been the focus of his life, despite setbacks and personal tragedies. Jack talks about the corrupt forces within the BLF that eventually destroyed his leadership, the sudden death of his fi rst wife and later his son, and his hopes that the modern era of economic rationalism and corporatization will return again to values of fairness and compassion.

CURRICULUM LINKS

This episode of this series of the Aus- tralian Biography project is an excellent teaching resource for middle to senior secondary school and tertiary students. It is particularly relevant to:

• History • Geography • Political Studies • Studies of Society and Environment • English

BEFORE WATCHING Under Jack’s guidance, they joined with rights and international politics. local communities to preserve such sig- The issues discussed in this episode high- nifi cant sites as Sydney’s historic Rocks In this interview, Jack refl ects on his life- light themes concerned with the power of area, Centennial Park, Victoria Street in long commitment to social justice. Born collective community action to exert con- Kings Cross and the last stretch of public in 1929 on a poor dairy farm in far north trol over the quality of future living spaces. bushland on the Parramatta River. , Jack’s early life was shaped This episode is also an exercise in oral by the death of his mother when he was history in which a principal participant in As a crusading unionist, Jack also fought six. The family of fi ve children was split a political movement of ongoing national for safety reforms on building sites and, up, and Jack spent much of his remain- significance, namely Jack Mundey, is from the 1960s, helped usher in a new era ing childhood with his father, an early given a platform by Robin Hughes’s

ISSUE 29 AUSTRALIAN SCREEN EDUCATION of union activism for wider social issues, infl uence on his later politics and social questions to detail his perspective on from feminism and gay liberation to land values. Arriving in Sydney as a young the historic events he helped shape. 2

L-R: JACK BEING ARRESTED IN THE EARLY SEVENTIES FOR SPEAKING OUT AGAINST CONSCRIPTION; JACK WITH HIS WIFE JUDY AND SON MICHAEL IN 1970 Mundey responds to Hughes’s ques- ervation were saved by the green-bans. • Woolloomooloo, saved from $400 tions largely through the use of personal The green-bans eventually led to the million worth of high-rise commercial anecdotes. These in effect highlight government bringing buildings, and since proclaimed as a for the audience the individual motiva- in tighter demolition laws. prototype for attractive and useful in- tions behind the struggles of the time. ner-city redevelopment where a genu- This personal form of direct storytelling In this half hour program, Jack Mundey ine socio-economic mix of residents and oral history also presents us with a initially talks about some of the areas live in medium-density buildings with picture of the personal satisfactions and saved by the green-ban movement in trees and landscaped surroundings. disappointments held by Mundey towards Sydney in particular. These included: the eventual outcomes of the green-ban Despite the fact the green-ban campaign movement. His refl ections offer the audi- • The Rocks, the birthplace of European was broken from within the ranks of trade ence a guide for the environmental deci- Australia, where over three million unionism, partly due to the New South sions of the future. tourists go each year; Wales branch’s commitment to limited • Centennial Park, which was saved tenure of offi ce for union offi cials, Mun- BACKGROUND from being turned into a concrete dey argues that the political signifi cance sports stadium; of the green-ban movement was that it The background to the green-ban strug- • the Botanic Gardens, which was demonstrated the potential power of a gles is the story of the destruction of saved from becoming a car park to winning alliance between environmental- Australia’s major cities in the 1960s and the Opera House; ists and trade unionists. As 90 per cent early 1970s. Vast amounts of money were poured into property development of a predominately commercial and specula- tive nature and valuable old buildings and areas of affordable housing were often destroyed in the process.

The BLF under Jack Mundey’s leadership insisted these development priorities be reversed, that the preservation of open community space and heritage buildings as well as the construction of more afford- able fl ats and houses was more important than piling up empty or under-used com- mercial offi ce buildings.

Beginning in 1971 with the fi rst success- ful BLF assisted community action to stop the development of an area called Kelly’s Bush in Sydney, the anti-develop- ment campaign that followed throughout Australia maintained that all building work performed should be of a socially use- ful and ecologically benign nature. The bans unions used to achieve this agenda were called green-bans to emphasize the wider community and environmental in- terest involved. It was also to distinguish ISSUE 29 AUSTRALIAN SCREEN EDUCATION them from a black-ban, a union action to protect the economic interests of its own members, which was already viewed by some members of the community in a negative light.

By 1974, 42 green-bans had been im- posed by the NSW BLF, holding up well over $3,000 million worth of development. Over 100 Australian buildings considered by the National Trust to be worthy of pres- 3

JACK AS A TEENAGE FOOTBALLER 8 AUSTRALIAN BIOGRAPHY JACK MUNDEY

of the population resides in urban areas, AFTER WATCHING cess to provide further insights into Mundey still argues that success in pre- the period? serving the built environment is vital, and DISCUSSION POINTS the actions he helped instigate showed FURTHER ACTIVITIES that trade unionists are especially well Discussion could focus more generally on placed to infl uence the construction of how and why Australians have sought to The following activities are designed to the built environment. preserve their natural and built heritage. further develop students’ awareness of environmental issues at play in their own SETTING THE CONTEXT The following questions raised by the community today. program could direct the discussion at Set the context by asking students to: different points and be researched as • Attend a local council meeting to needed: observe council arbitration of a de- • discuss what they can recall as velopment application in dispute. changes to the urban environment in • Consider the recollections of Jack • Examine local newspapers and their own lifetime. Mundey about the green bans. What community newsletters (environ- • talk about the way community mem- attitudes and values come through mental group, local historical soci- bers view development in their own in his account of the movement? ety, National Trust committee) for a locality now. What other accounts do you think current action in your locality aimed would add to a broader picture of at saving part of the natural or built PRIOR KNOWLEDGE AND the bans? environment. UNDERSTANDINGS • What do you think environmental • Identify the key stakeholders and con- activism in the 1970s represented to sider the opposing arguments in the Prior to viewing this program, students communities threatened by redevel- issue under investigation. What are could discuss what they consider to be opment? How did people decide what the main arguments for and against buildings of heritage value or places of im- was worth preserving? the development? portant public space in their community. • Did the program help you to recognize • Can you identify any links between the Questions to focus on include: any attitudes or assumptions that are current issue and past discussions evident in current heritage and envi- and actions in your community? • Do you know of any important com- ronmental debates? • Invite individuals or group representa- munity actions to preserve these • Do you know of any green bans still tives to the school to present their po- community assets? being activated by unions today? sition on the issue. What strategies for • What do you know about Jack Mun- advocacy and action are they using? dey and the issues in which he was Students could now be prompted to recall How have they interacted and worked involved in during the 60s and 70s? the perspective presented by Mundey in with other community members? the program and consider the following What are their predictions about To assist in answering these questions, questions about the signifi cance of the future discussions and actions? students could carry out the following green ban movement: • Prepare a class response to the pro- activities: posals for the action put forward. This • What did the green ban movement could be published in the local media • Access newspaper articles in the local stand for? What do you know about and copies sent to local government media and local studies collection of the processes that were involved? representatives. How do the views the school or community library. • How important was the effectiveness of the group differ from those of key • Visit the local town hall, civic exhibi- of alliances to the rise and fall of the stakeholders? In what ways are the tion space or council chambers to movement? ideas similar? examine area development maps. • What can the green ban movement • Discuss the meaning of the following tell us about the experience of social FINAL DISCUSSION terms which are used in the pro- change and environmental activism in gram: Australian communities? Students should by now have had a Socialism, unionism, environmental- chance to analyse the ways in which ism, left-leaning, Communism, Stalin- Other discussion could focus on issues issues are managed and strategic posi- ism, Marxism, apartheid, green ban, raised by the nature of Mundey’s recol- tions are developed in local area politics. privatization, deregulation, economic lection of these past events: In order to refl ect on the opportunities for fundamentalism youth to participate in actions at the local • What can oral history accounts tell us government level, the following question about the role of memory in recon- could form the basis of a fi nal discussion structing the past? of the issues raised in the Jack Mundey

ISSUE 29 AUSTRALIAN SCREEN EDUCATION • Discuss the strengths and weakness- program. es of oral histories and testimonies. 4 • What other sources could you ac- • What strategies would you utilize to http://ee.environment.gov.au The Federal Study guide © ATOM and Film Australia ensure young people have a voice in Department of Environment and Herit- This study guide was produced by ATOM. community decisions that impact on age promotes a national network of For more information about ATOM study the environment and/or local herit- information programs, materials and guides or The Speakers’ Bureau visit our age? publications in the interests of educa- web site: www.metromagazine.com.au tion for sustainability. or email: [email protected] REFERENCES TAKING ACTION BOOKS Below are some organizations to contact Meredith Burgmann and Verity Burg- when seeking information on community mann, Green Bans, Red Union: Envi- action to protect heritage values. ronmental Activism and the New South For information about Film Australia’s Wales Builders Labourers’ Federation, The National Trust of Australia programs, contact: UNSW Press, 1998. (Centres in each state and territory) National Film and Sound Archive of www.nationaltrust.org.au Australia Drew Hutton and Libby Connors, A Sales and Distribution | PO Box 397 History Of The Australian Environment The International Council on Monu- Pyrmont NSW 2009 Movement, Cambridge University Press, ments and Sites: ICOMOS International T +61 2 8202 0144 | F +61 2 8202 0101 Cambridge, 1999. Secretariat, 49-51 rue de la Fédéra- E: [email protected] | www.nfsa.gov.au tion -75015 Paris France, Tel: +33 (0)1 Jack Mundey, Green Bans and Beyond, 4567 6770 Fax: +33 (0)1 4566 0622 Angus and Robertson, Sydney, 1981. www.icomos.org

WEB SITES Labor Council of NSW: 10th Floor, 377- 383 Sussex Street, Sydney NSW 2000. http://www.atua.org.au/atua.htm Austral- Telephone: (02) 9264 1691 Fax: (02) 9261 ian Archives. Listings of 3505 http://council.labor.net.au archival and heritage sources including the National Library of Australia’s Oral TREE-FRIENDLY ASSOCIATIONS History Collection. Use the search func- tion to locate material on Jack Mundey The following associations and groups and the BLF. are committed to the propagation and protection of trees. Most of these groups www.search.org.au The Social Education welcome public support. Local councils And Research Concerning Humanity also offer advice about tree planting in Foundation (SEARCH). Promotes greater your local community. understanding in the community of the main factors affecting social life and aims Landcare Australia to infl uence social development and ad- https://landcareaustralia.org.au/ vance social well-being. Greening Australia www.greeningaustralia www.workers.labor.net.au The Labor Council .org.au of NSW. Focuses on industrial issues and publishes the Workers Online newslet- The Men of the Trees www.menofthetrees.com ter. .au ISSUE 29 AUSTRALIAN SCREEN EDUCATION www.teachingheritage.nsw.edu.au A edu- Planet Ark www.planetark.org cational heritage web site run with the assistance of the NSW Heritage Offi ce, Australian Biography: Jack Mundey the Offi ce of the Board of Studies NSW A Film Australia National Interest Program and the NSW Department of Education Director/Producer: Robin Hughes & Training. Executive Producer: Mark Hamlyn Duration: 26 minutes http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/ Year: 2001 subjects/7669178/health-science-and- technology/ Radio National’s Earthbeat program. Transcripts of featured programs as well as reference material on a range of issues related to the 5 environment.