Burnum Burnum

Burnum Burnum (10 January 1936 – 17 August 1997)

The Welfare Board promoted his achievements in rugby league and surf lifesaving at Kempsey in their publication Dawn magazine, and reported that he left Kinchela to become a pioneer Aboriginal employee in the NSW Public Service, working for the Department of Agriculture, where he remained for 13 years. But Stolen Generations people like Burnum, though raised "white", were often rejected by white society, leaving them with nothing. In the 1960s he searched for his Aboriginal identity and joined the battle for Aboriginal rights.^[2]

Sportsman

Burnum Burnum also played

Burnum Burnum first came into contact with the Bahá’í Faith in 1956, and formally identified as a Bahá’í in 1969. He later cited the consistent love shown to him by Bahá’ís as the reason for his becoming a Bahá'í and becoming active in teaching the Bahá'í Faith. In the early 1970s, he was elected as one of nine members of Australia's Bahá'î administrative body (the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Australia) and served with distinction. In 1975, he encountered American playwright and author, Tom Lysaght, at the Canberra Airport, invited Lysaght to his home and both introduced the fledgling young writer to the Bahá'í Movement and confirmed Lysaght in his new faith.^[7]

Acting

In 1983 Burnum Burnum appeared in Golden Dolphin Productions'

Burnum appeared as Uncle Albert in the 1992 TV series Bony, inspired by Arthur Upfield's novels about Bony, an Aboriginal detective.^{[citation needed]}

Politics

Burnum stood for election to the

Former Prime Minister John Howard described Burnum Burnum as "a very gracious man and very strongly committed to the welfare of Aboriginal Australians".^{[citation needed]}

Death

In his later life, Burnum Burnum lived in