Freedom Ride story finds a permanent home in Walgett

Amy Townsend with WAMS chairperson, Mary Purse at the new cultural pavilion that will celebrate Walgett’s Freedom Ride. Photo: WAMS

Story: Kristin Murdock kmurdock@outbackradio.com.au

Walgett’s place in Australia’s civil rights history will be given a new platform later this month, with the official opening of a cultural education pavilion at the town’s Freedom Ride Memorial Park.

The pavilion will be officially opened on Tuesday 29 September, from 10am to 1pm, marking the latest development at the memorial park in Fox Street and creating a dedicated space to tell the story of the 1965 Freedom Ride from a local perspective.

Directed by Walgett Aboriginal Medical Service (WAMS), the project honours the Freedom Riders, led by Charles Perkins and the Student Action for Aborigines, as well as local Aboriginal people who challenged racial segregation in Walgett.[…]

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