D Kath Walker is a very important figure in Queensland history. She was a leading Australian poet, writer, political activist, artist and educator. Kath grew up on North Stradbroke Island; she left school and home at 13 to work as a maid in Brisbane. During World War Two Kath volunteered to serve in the Australian Women’s Army Service. She had to return to domestic service work to support her young sons when her marriage ended in the 1950s. Kath had a lifelong commitment to advancing civil rights and improving the lives of her people. She was a leading member of Aboriginal ( 澳大利亚土著的 ) organisations that demanded Constitutional change to end state control over Aboriginal people. This hard fought campaign resulted in the history making 1967 Referendum ( 公投 ). Australians voted to include the Aboriginal people in the census ( 人口普查 ) and to ensure they were covered by Commonwealth laws. In the 1950s Kath also became interested in poetry. She joined the Realist Writer’s Group where she was encouraged to publish her work. Her first collection, We Are Going , was published in 1964 selling over 10,000 copies. Determined to lift the Aboriginal people out of suffering, Kath later moved back to Stradbroke Island to become an educator and cultural guardian for her people. She founded the Noonuccal-Nughie Education and Cultural Centre at her home, Moongalba. In the 1970s Kath travelled across Australia and the world on lecture tours to raise awareness of the disadvantage experienced by her people. Kath continued to be a successful writer. She wrote a series of books for young readers recreating the stories she learned as a young girl, starting with Stradbroke Dreamtime (1972). She saw young people as the hope of the future with thousands visiting the centre at North Stradbroke during the final decades of her life. In 1987 Kath changed her name to Oodgeroo Noonuccal. Oodgeroo continued to work for her people up to her death. She died at her home on Stradbroke Island on 16 September 1993. She will be remembered for her pioneering poetry and her important role in Australian political life.