A Study of Political Participation and Inequality in Australia During the 1960S and 1970S
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The University of Notre Dame Australia ResearchOnline@ND Theses 2020 Is Liberal Democracy a Contradiction?: A Study of Political Participation and Inequality in Australia During the 1960s and 1970s Daniel A. Elias Follow this and additional works at: https://researchonline.nd.edu.au/theses Part of the Arts and Humanities Commons COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA Copyright Regulations 1969 WARNING The material in this communication may be subject to copyright under the Act. Any further copying or communication of this material by you may be the subject of copyright protection under the Act. Do not remove this notice. This dissertation/thesis is brought to you by ResearchOnline@ND. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses by an authorized administrator of ResearchOnline@ND. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Is Liberal Democracy a Contradiction?: A study of political participation and inequality in Australia during the 1960s and 1970s. By Daniel A. Elias School of Arts and Sciences A thesis submitted for the Degree of Master of Philosophy June 2020 1 Declaration I, Daniel Andrés Elias, certify that this thesis is entirely my own work. Furthermore, to the best of my knowledge, this thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference is made in the text of the thesis. Signature: Name: Daniel Elias Date: 25/06/2020 i Abstract The central concern of this thesis is the disconnect between the premise of democracy and economic realities. The first section of the thesis examines the essential components of a democratic political system by drawing upon political theorists of the past and present. From Aristotle to Robert Dahl the thesis gains an understanding of what democracy is, by identifying and isolating its essential mechanisms. The following section situates liberalism and its origins. Such a history is critical for within liberalism is the sum of many social norms, philosophies, laws, and culture in Australia. Combining political theory and the historical context of liberalism reveals several contradictory political ideals that do not match with economic and social reality. However, the mode of production and the political superstructure had effectively transformed by the 1960s and 1970s giving rise to a post-material humanitarian politics. The last sections of the thesis cover this unique moment in Australia. During this period democratic politics was being genuinely expressed. This was a time of increased political participation and decreasing inequality. What this period offers is an insight into when Australia was a healthy democracy, and identifies a time when economic realities were beginning to match the premise of democracy. ii Acknowledgments This thesis was supported by the Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship. I wish to acknowledge and thank the following people, in no particular order, without whom this work would never had come to fruition: To my supervisors at the University of Notre Dame Fremantle, Dr. Leigh Straw and Dr. Sandra Nasr whose wise and witty guidance helped me see this thesis to a conclusion. Words cannot express how forever grateful I am to you both; To Rosemary Irwin, Clare MacNish, and Sasha de Araujo your research assistance was flawless, you all filled the gaps when I had no time; To Georgia Hooper and Amelia McDermott, the two of you were my right and left hand, the intellect and the wit, and my dearest of friends; To Caitlin Eaton and the Stripes Committee for your comradery towards the finale; To my postgrad colleagues for sharing in the revelry of this academic process; To my family you've acted as the bedrock of my sanity; To my housemates I have no words just my love; To Teddy may you Rest In Peace. iii Table of Content Declaration ...………………………………………………………….………………………...i Abstract ...………………………..…..…………………………………………………………ii Acknowledgement ...……………………………………………….…………………………iii Table of Content ...………………………………………………………………………….…iv List of Figures …………………………………………………………...………………….…vi Abbreviations ...……………………………………………………………...…………….…vii Introduction ...………………..…………………………………………………………………1 Research Question ...……………………………………..…………………….………2 Purpose …………………………………………………………………………..……… 2 Method ...……………...……………………………………….……….…………………4 Historiographical Approach ...…………………….…………………………………..5 Limitations ...……………………………………….………….…………………………6 Situating Australia ………………………………………………………………………8 The Composition of Power ..….……………………………………………………...10 Chapter 1 – Surveying Political Theory ……………………………………….….………13 Democratic Theory and Society .…………….………………………………………14 Modern Democracy to Biased Democracy …………………..……………………16 Participation and Political Reception ……..…………………..……………………18 Post-Material Politics ...……………………………………………………………….20 Apathy, De-politicisation, and Alienation …………………………….……………21 Political Economy ...……………………………...……………………………………25 Conclusion ...……………………………………………………………………………28 Chapter 2 – The Ideology of Capitalism ….………………………………………….……29 Democracy and Liberalism ……………………………………..……………………30 Civil War and Enclosure ………………………………………………………………31 Capitalist Development and Legalised Theft ….……………………..……………33 Ideology and Liberalism ……………………………………………………..…….…37 Liberalism and Institutionalised Poverty ……………………………………..……39 Liberalism and Misogyny ...………………………………………………………..…41 Liberalism and Colonial Violence ….……….…………………………………….…43 iv Liberalism in Australia ……………….……………………………………….………45 Conclusion ……………………………….………….………………………….………48 Chapter 3 – Mid-20th Century Australia ….…………………………………………..……49 Grounding Rhetoric ……………………….……………………….……………….…50 Political Bargaining Power ………...…………………………………………………53 Affluence & Security on Social Movements ….……………………………………57 Conclusion .……………………………………………….………………….…………63 Chapter 4 – Upending the Status Quo ….…………………………………………………65 Indigenous Rights ……………………………………….………………………….…66 Women’s Rights ...………………..……………………………………………………73 Peace Movement ...…………………………………………………………….………79 Conclusion …………………………………………………….….…………….………88 Chapter 5 – Times are Changing …………………………………………….…………….89 Mothballing the Draft …………………………………………………….……………90 Racial Discrimination Act ………………………………………………….…………97 Equal Wages …...…………………………………………………..…….….……..…102 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………….…………107 Chapter 6 – Conclusion ……………………………………………………..….………….109 Democratic Feedback Loop ……………………………………………..…….……110 Personal Wealth and Public Opinion ……………………………….…..….……..111 Conclusion ...………………………………………………………….….…...………111 Bibliography ...………………………………………………………………….…...………114 Appendix A ……………………………………………….………….………………………131 Appendix B …………………………………………………………….……………….……132 v List of Figures Figure 1 – Unemployment in Australia………………………....………………………..….52 Figure 2 – Australian Trade Union Membership…………………………………………...55 Figure 3 – Percentage of the Australian Population who were Union Members…....….55 Figure 4 – Pareto Coeffeciant………………………………………………………………..60 Figure 5 – Aust. Population/Immigrant Background (%)…………………….………….…61 Figure 6 – GDP Growth (annual %)…………………………………………..……………..62 . vi Abbreviations ABS - Australian Bureau of Statistics ACICD - Australian Congress for International Cooperation and Disarmament ACTU - Australian Council of Trade Unions ALP - Australian Labor Party APWU - Amalgamated Postal Workers Union AWU - Australian Workers Union BPPA - Black Panther Party of Australia CANSA - Committee Against the National Service Act CPA - Communist Party of Australia CPV - Campaign for Peace in Vietnam FCAATSI - Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders ILO - International Labour Organisation NAWU - Northern Australian Workers Union NGO - Non-Governmental Organisation NSW - New South Wales OPEC - Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries PNG - Papua New Guinea SAFA - Student Action For Aborigines SOS - Save Our Sons SUA - Seamen’s Union of Australia UAW - Union of Australian Women UDHR - Universal Declaration of Human Rights UN - United Nations vii USA - United States of America VMC - Vietnam Moratorium Campaign VTHC - Victorian Trades Hall Council WEL - Women’s Electoral Lobby WWII - World War Two viii Introduction Liberal democracy is often criticised as a contradiction in terms, making a distinction between the political superstructure and the economic mode of production with the dichotomy justifying and reproducing one another. The political superstructure appears as a mirror to the economic mode of production. The distinction claims that a democracy cannot operate within a liberal framework. This is because liberalism presupposes the capitalist mode of production, which creates inequality. Whereas democracy presupposes equality and tends to promote policies that reflect that. Thus the two concepts of liberalism and democracy are contradictory. However, after World War Two (WWII) there was a significant change in economic policy. Policies to promote the welfare of others became increasingly common. A form of economic security and an equitable distribution of wealth reached its peak in the 1960s and 1970s. This period saw an evolution of the political and economic; Australia’s capitalist development incorporated a wide cross section of society. This development led to people having greater political bargaining power, for their labour became essential to Australia’s continued economic growth. The humane values and aspirations of liberalism began to be universally applied, the political was no longer serving a narrow section of society. To be clear, democratic