Anyone who’s met retired Thirroul lawyer John Corker will know you could never describe him as a ‘yes man’.

But with the referendum into the Indigenous Voice fast approaching that’s exactly what John is, putting himself forward to spearhead the campaign in Wollongong for the YES vote.

John has dedicated most of his career to fighting for justice and human rights with more than 40 years’ experience working in the private sector, community and government. 

He has spent much of his life working with and for Aboriginal people. Living in Alice Springs for 10 years in the 1980s, John worked for Aboriginal Legal Aid and the Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association being part of the team that established the Aboriginal-owned Imparja Television service.

“Central Australia is where I learnt about the history and saw first-hand the significant disadvantage that Aboriginal people face,” he said.

“It’s time they were more directly involved in the solutions.”

John was the head lawyer for the Australian Broadcasting Authority and later a board member of the National Indigenous Television Service (NITV) up until the time it became an SBS channel. And he spent the last 15 years of his career as the CEO of the Australian Pro Bono Centre.

For John, it was a no-brainer to throw himself headfirst into a leading role in the YES campaign.

“I believe that as a nation we are overdue to properly recognise Australia’s first peoples in our constitution. As a country we are out of step internationally. This is an historical opportunity for Australia to move forward as a nation.

“The call for this has been going on for a long time and after a very extensive consultation process over 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders gave us the Uluru Statement from the Heart, which is an invitation to walk alongside with Australia’s first peoples for a better future in Voice, Treaty, Truth.

“The Voice is a modest ask from Aboriginal people to take their rightful place in Australia’s foundation document.

“There is nothing to fear from this proposed change. The constitution will say only that the Voice ‘may make representations’ to Parliament and Government. Representations are simply policy submissions which Parliament and Government can choose to accept or reject or adopt in part.

“This must deliver better outcomes for all, better policy making and a positive change from the present approach, which has clearly not been working and that’s because no one has listened to the actual people who are affected.

“I believe the Voice will be run by high-calibre people and make a significant difference to the way taxpayer money is now spent in Aboriginal affairs leading to greater efficiencies and better practical outcomes. We will all benefit from that.”

John said he was excited about the campaign and grateful that in just two weeks nearly 200 people have signed on to join the Wollongong campaign.

“At our campaign launch at UOW a few weeks ago, our Wollongong Citizen of the Year, Sally Stevenson, challenged us to rally support from across the entire city, so Wollongong achieves the highest YES vote in the nation.

“That’s a big ask, but I reckon we’re up for it.”

When John isn’t campaigning for the Voice, he dedicates his ‘spare time’ as the chair for Tender Funerals Australia based in Port Kembla and secretary of the Coledale Oysters Swimming Club, while also providing other pro bono legal work.

For more information about the referendum

• Visit the stall in the Wollongong Mall outside the Wesley Mission Church every Friday from 10am
• Attend the Gathering for the Voice at North Wollongong Beach on Sunday, 6 August, 9-11am
• Attend the Voice for a Voice concert at the Servo in Port Kembla on 2 Sept from 7pm
• Attend the Art from our Hearts exhibition at the Clifton School of Arts on the weekend of 12-13 August from 10am-4pm.