Word for Word

21 Dec 2014

Intimacy & Liberty – Dino Hodge tells Don Dunstan’s story

Arts, News & Politics, Society & Culture

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Dino hodge Don Dunstan championed the rights of homosexuals at a time when they were treated as criminals, classified as insane, and regarded as outcasts. He was also bisexual. As Premier of South Australia in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s, Don Dunstan is acknowledged as one of Australia’s foremost civil rights advocates of the twentieth century. He actively promoted the rights of Indigenous Australians and women, and he passionately pursued multiculturalism.

Dunstan worked as a member of parliament for more than twenty-five years, and then throughout the remainder of his life, to realise his vision of full equality for same-sex attracted citizens. He focused on both legislative and cultural reforms, and introduced changes to the Police Force that were unprecedented and strongly resisted.

In this, the first biography ever written about Don Dunstan, author Dino Hodge records the change in public discourse over issues of homosexuality – from morality to state security and then civil liberties. Hodge documents the efforts and the backlash Dunstan suffered whilst finally giving due recognition to one of the country’s most remarkable champions of human rights.

About the Author: Dino Hodge is a man of many talents. From 1983 – 2000, he lived in the Northern Territory of Australia and worked extensively with ethnic, gay and lesbian, and HIV-affected groups and communities. During this time, he wrote the Northern Territory’s first historical account of the gay community in the Northern Territory titled: Did You Meet Any Malagas? The book was also made into a play and performed in New York during the 1994 Gay Olympics.