A Unique Project Aims To Document Early Pride Activists

The Pride movement in Australia started well before the first Mardi Gras in 1978.  In 1970, the national network known as CAMP (Campaign Against Moral Persecution) was founded in Sydney.  The momentum of CAMP quickly spread to other States, fuelling the first LGBTQI+ rights marches and political campaigns for changes to oppressive laws and systems. 

50 years later, some of the original members of CAMP NSW are compiling a book of newly commissioned professional portrait photographs of members of CAMP NSW and its counterpart organisations across Australia, together with their personal stories about the impact CAMP (known as Society Five in Victoria) had on their lives at the time. 

The book is called Pioneers of Protest and Change in recognition of the vital role played by CAMP/Society Five activists in beginning a social movement that continues to this day.  

Robyn Kennedy, former Secretary of CAMP NSW, and one of the book’s publishers said that “while the history of the 78ers is now widely known, little recognition has been given to the people who came before then. The recent State Library exhibition, Coming Out in the 70s, provided some of the pre-1978 history, but the personal stories of those that lived through those times is missing. We believe that the individual contributions of the people who started the Pride movement in Australia is worth commemorating.”  

Initial costs related to photography and interview transcriptions were met through a grant, but additional funds are needed to cover the cost of book design and production. 

Donations can be made via gofundme.com/f/help-commemorate-the-camp-pioneers