Charles Frederick Maynard

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Fred Maynard
Born
Charles Frederick Maynard

(1879-07-04)4 July 1879
Died9 September 1946(1946-09-09) (aged 67)
Rydalmere, Sydney, New South Wales
Burial placeRookwood Cemetery
NationalityAustralian
Occupation(s)Indigenous activist; unionist
Known forFounder of the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association

Charles Frederick Maynard (4 July 1879 – 9 September 1946), an

Aboriginal Australian people. He is known for being the founder of the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association (AAPA) in Sydney, New South Wales
.

Early life

Fred Maynard was born on 4 July 1879, the third child of William Maynard, an English labourer, and Mary Maynard (née Phillips), an Aboriginal woman of

Protestant minister, who forced them to work long days, beat them, and housed them in a stable. However, during this time Maynard learned to read and the minister gave them access to his library.[2][3]

In his early teens, Maynard and his brother escaped the minister and moved to their sister's home in Sydney. From this point, Maynard travelled extensively, working a number of different jobs: photographer, gardener, drover and bullock driver.[citation needed]

Political activism and the AAPA

In 1907, Maynard returned to Sydney, working as a

wharf labourer in Woolloomooloo.[2] Here, Maynard was exposed to unionist ideas, and came into contact with African American and Afro-Caribbeans who brought with them exciting new political ideas, in particular, those of Marcus Garvey, the leader of the Universal Negro Improvement Association.[4][5] He advocated for land rights, citizenship and equal rights for Aboriginal people.[6]

In February 1925, Maynard and Tom Lacey founded the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association, which advocated for the right of Aboriginal people to determine their own lives.[7] The decision to create this organisation was heavily influenced by Maynard's own experience of being torn from his land and family in his youth.[2] The Association wrote letters to newspapers and the Aboriginal Protection Board, and in 1927 petitioned the NSW Premier, Jack Lang, for the return of Aboriginal land.[7] During this period, Maynard travelled extensively around the NSW North Coast protesting the theft of Indigenous-held land.

The Association spread throughout

Aboriginal reserves.[8] Maynard's vocal and staunch opposition to the Aboriginal Protection Board led to a series of public statements by the Board in an attempt to discredit Maynard, which eventually led to the dissolution of the AAPA.[9]

Later life, death and legacy

On 14 June 1928 Maynard married Minnie Critchley, a 32-year-old Englishwoman, with whom he had four children. He then lived life more privately, working to provide for his family.[1]

He was badly injured by an accident while working on the wharf, causing one of his legs to be broken in six places, and later amputated.

diabetes mellitus at the Mental Hospital in Rydalmere, leaving his wife, two sons, and two daughters. He was buried in Rookwood Cemetery.[1]

One of Fred Maynard's two sons was renowned jockey

In addition to his contemporary impact on the efforts of the Aboriginal Protection Board to steal Aboriginal land, Maynard's vocal style of opposition has had a significant influence on successive generations of activists in NSW Indigenous communities.[16]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Goodall, Heather; Maynard, John (15 March 2021). "Maynard, Charles Frederick (Fred) (1879–1946)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 3 October 2022. This article replaces the original Volume 15 ADB biography, authored by Heather Goodall.
  2. ^ .
  3. ^ "Aussie mavericks: Fred Maynard – Our first Aboriginal activist". The Big Smoke. 10 January 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  4. ^ Maynard, John (2013). "Fred Maynard and Marcus Garvey: Storming the Urban Space". Exploring urban identities and histories (PDF). Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. pp. 153–159.
  5. JSTOR 24046685
    .
  6. ^ . Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  7. ^ a b c "Australian Aborigines Progressive Association". Dictionary of Sydney. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
  8. ^ "Australian Aborigines Progressive Association - Organisation". Find and Connect. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
  9. ^ Maynard, John (1997). "Fred Maynard and the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association (AAPA): One God, One Aim, One destiny" (PDF). Aboriginal History. 21: 11.
  10. ^ Callinan, Josh (13 April 2017). "Maynard remembered as trail blazing jockey of era". Newcastle Herald. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  11. ^ "Staff Profile: Professor John Meynard". University of Newcastle (Australia). 16 January 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
  12. AIATSIS
    . Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  13. ^ "Purai - Global Indigenous History Centre". The University of Newcastle, Australia. 11 November 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  14. ^ "People". The University of Newcastle, Australia. 16 March 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  15. ^ "Professor John Maynard / Staff Profile". The University of Newcastle, Australia. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
  16. ^ "The Koori History Website". Retrieved 10 March 2017.

Further reading

  • Maynard, John (1997). "Fred Maynard and the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association (AAPA): One God, One Aim, One destiny".
    JSTOR 24046334
    .