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Issue Details: First known date: 2006... 2006 Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'Explores Riley's political and personal life as a key Aboriginal activist. A member of the Stolen Generation, he was a major contributor to national politics. Riley's success was based on his charismatic personality and advocacy skills. Centre stage in the fight for land rights, he was closely involved in the establishment of ATSIC, Deaths in Custody and the Stolen Generations and the WA Aboriginal Legal Service.' (Publisher blurb)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Other Formats

Works about this Work

Untitled Sue Taffe , 2009 single work review
— Appears in: History Australia , April vol. 6 no. 1 2009; (p. 26.1-26.3)

— Review of Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography
Stanner Award to Riley Book 2008 single work column
— Appears in: Koori Mail , 16 January no. 417 2008; (p. 42)
Untitled Nicholas Brown , 2007 single work review
— Appears in: Aboriginal History , vol. 31 no. 2007; (p. 202-203)

— Review of Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography
Untitled Nathan Woolford , 2007 single work review
— Appears in: The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education , vol. 36 no. 2007; (p. 134-135)

— Review of Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography
[Review Essay] Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Isabelle Auguste , 2007 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Aboriginal Studies , no. 1 2007; (p. 152-153)

— Review of Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography

'On 30th April 1996 Aboriginal activist and leader Robert Riley — born Robert Dinah, and universally known as Rob – drove into a plain, besser-block motel on a busy highway in a light-industrial part of Perth’s southern suburbs. He paid cash for Room 24, carried in a few personal belongings and shut the door. Alone in the crammed and sparsely furnished room, he penned his final thoughts. The next day, staff found him dead, hanging from the shower fixture. He was forty-one.

'This is how the book begins (p.1): a description of the last moment of activist and leader Rob Riley. The reader is taken directly and abruptly to the sad and tragic reality of Rob Riley’s suicide. The first question coming to mind when we approach the book is then: Why? Why such a prominent figure like Rob Riley would take his own life. The reader will find some answers as he goes along, but there is more to the story than a ‘single-minded attempt to explain Rob’s suicide’ as the author, Quentin Beresford, points out himself (p.7). Beresford did not want to overshadow Riley’s successes and accomplishments. Nevertheless, Riley’s death is inextricably interwoven into the whole story of his life: the story of an Aboriginal man from Western Australia, a Noongar who grew up in an institution, separated from his family, a man confused about his identity, a man who was the victim of sexual abuse, a man who experienced racism, a husband, a father, a man who became a fighter for Aboriginal rights, a man who engaged in an enduring struggle full of disappointments, failures, and obstacles. But more than the story of a man, it is also the story of a nation, of a people. Through this 374- page biography of Riley, Quentin Beresford gives us a real history lesson. Beresford is really specific in his account and has the sense of historical details. He relies on a wide range of materials but his access to family records and photographs brings some more value to his rich and up-to-date bibliography. It testifies to a solid research work and through the different stages of Rob Riley’s life, a whole page of the history of Australia opens up to us.' (Introduction)

A Life of Giving Victoria Laurie , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 13-14 May 2006; (p. 14-15)

— Review of Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography
Riley: Man of Passion and Principle Ken Spillman , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: The West Australian , 15 July 2006; (p. 6)

— Review of Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography
Blak and Write Anita Heiss , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: The Bulletin , 12 September vol. 124 no. 6537 2006; (p. 68-69)

— Review of Legendary Tales of the Australian Aborigines David Unaipon , 1924 selected work prose ; Meanjin vol. 65 no. 1 2006 periodical issue ; Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography
Untitled Sean Gorman , 2006 single work review
— Appears in: Reviews in Australian Studies , vol. 1 no. 3 2006;

— Review of Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography
[Review Essay] Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Isabelle Auguste , 2007 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Aboriginal Studies , no. 1 2007; (p. 152-153)

— Review of Rob Riley : An Aboriginal Leader's Quest for Justice Quentin Beresford , 2006 single work biography

'On 30th April 1996 Aboriginal activist and leader Robert Riley — born Robert Dinah, and universally known as Rob – drove into a plain, besser-block motel on a busy highway in a light-industrial part of Perth’s southern suburbs. He paid cash for Room 24, carried in a few personal belongings and shut the door. Alone in the crammed and sparsely furnished room, he penned his final thoughts. The next day, staff found him dead, hanging from the shower fixture. He was forty-one.

'This is how the book begins (p.1): a description of the last moment of activist and leader Rob Riley. The reader is taken directly and abruptly to the sad and tragic reality of Rob Riley’s suicide. The first question coming to mind when we approach the book is then: Why? Why such a prominent figure like Rob Riley would take his own life. The reader will find some answers as he goes along, but there is more to the story than a ‘single-minded attempt to explain Rob’s suicide’ as the author, Quentin Beresford, points out himself (p.7). Beresford did not want to overshadow Riley’s successes and accomplishments. Nevertheless, Riley’s death is inextricably interwoven into the whole story of his life: the story of an Aboriginal man from Western Australia, a Noongar who grew up in an institution, separated from his family, a man confused about his identity, a man who was the victim of sexual abuse, a man who experienced racism, a husband, a father, a man who became a fighter for Aboriginal rights, a man who engaged in an enduring struggle full of disappointments, failures, and obstacles. But more than the story of a man, it is also the story of a nation, of a people. Through this 374- page biography of Riley, Quentin Beresford gives us a real history lesson. Beresford is really specific in his account and has the sense of historical details. He relies on a wide range of materials but his access to family records and photographs brings some more value to his rich and up-to-date bibliography. It testifies to a solid research work and through the different stages of Rob Riley’s life, a whole page of the history of Australia opens up to us.' (Introduction)

Illustrator Wins Top Premier's Book Prize Rod Moran , 2007 single work column
— Appears in: The West Australian , 9 June 2007; (p. 7)
Stanner Award to Riley Book 2008 single work column
— Appears in: Koori Mail , 16 January no. 417 2008; (p. 42)
Last amended 31 May 2017 17:46:55
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