The 1967 referendum — a vote to count Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as part of the Australian population

Until the 1967 referendum, First Nations people were not included in the census and so weren’t considered members of the Australian population. This referendum was the most successful in Australia’s history, with over 90 per cent voting in favour of changing the Constitution. It empowered federal governments for the first time to make laws that might improve the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.