David Unaipon
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David Unaipon (born 28th September 1872, Point Mcleay (Raukkan) Mission; died 7th February 1967) was an Australian Aboriginal preacher, inventor and writer.
He was awarded ten patents, including a shearing machine, but could not raise money to get his inventions into production. He was known as the Australian Leonardo for his mechanical ideas, which included anticipatory drawings for a helicopter design based on the principle of the boomerang.
He was inquisitively religious, believing in an equivalence of traditional Aboriginal and Christian spirituality. He was employed by the Aborigines' Friends' Association to collect subscription money. The travel involved in this work brought him into contact with many intelligent people sympathetic with the cause of Aboriginal rights, and gave him the opportunity to lecture on Aboriginal culture and rights. He was often refused accommodation and refreshment due to his race.
Unaipon proposed to the government of South Australia to replace the office of Chief Protector of Aborigines with a responsible board.
He was one of the first published Aboriginal writers, the author of numerous articles in newspapers and magazines, retelling traditional stories and arguing for the rights of Aborigines.
He was a researcher and witness for the Bleakley Enquiry into Aboriginal Welfare and lobbied the Commonwealth Government to take over responsibility for Aborigines from the States.
Unaipon returned to his birthplace in his old age, where he worked on inventions and attempted to reveal the secret of perpetual motion. He was buried in the Raukkan mission cemetery.
An interpretive dance based on David Unaipon's life, Unaipon is performed by the Bangarra Dance Theatre.
He features on the Australian $50 note.
External links
- Biographical notes (http://www.bangarra.com.au/diary/clan-chor.html) by Bangarra Dance Theatre choreographer Frances Rings
- David and James Unaipon (http://www.unisa.edu.au/unaipon/about/unaipon.asp) at Unaipon School, University of South Australia