Australia and the World Past and Present

Arthur Calwell (1896–1973) was an influential figure in twentieth-century Australian politics.

He was a founding architect of Australia’s post-war immigration program, the country’s first Minister for Immigration and later served as Leader of the Australian Labor Party.

Calwell left a contested legacy.

He is widely remembered for promoting mass migration under the slogan “populate or perish”, He was also one of the strongest defenders of the White Australia Policy.

Calwell was born in 1896 in West Melbourne.

He became active in the Labor Party at an early age.

His strong Catholic faith, Irish heritage and commitment to the labour movement shaped his political outlook throughout his life.

In 1940 Calwell was elected to the House of Representatives as the Member for Melbourne – a seat he would hold until 1972.

In 1945 he became Australia’s first Minister for Immigration. The country had survived the Second World War, but fears about Australia’s vulnerability in the Asia-Pacific region lingered on.

Calwell believed that Australia’s security and prosperity depended upon dramatically increasing its population. He argued that Australia required millions of additional residents to defend itself, expand its economy and develop its industries.

Under Calwell, Australia launched one of the largest immigration programs in its history. Assisted migration schemes brought hundreds of thousands of British migrants to Australia and large numbers of displaced persons from war-torn Europe were also admitted.

Although Calwell initially hoped that the vast majority of migrants would come from Britain, insufficient British migration led his department to recruit people from countries including Poland, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Italy, Greece and the Netherlands.

These policies transformed Australia’s demographic composition and laid the foundations for modern multicultural Australia, even though that was not Calwell’s intention.

Despite championing mass migration, Calwell remained an uncompromising supporter of the White Australia Policy.

That Australia’s population should remain relatively homogeneous was one of his central concerns.

Many of his public comments reflected an attitude that is today regarded as overtly racist.

He opposed Asian immigration, resisted the admission of Japanese war brides and argued forcefully that Australia should not become a multiracial society.

In his memoirs he wrote, “I reject, in conscience, the idea that Australia should or ever can become a multi-racial society and survive.”

In 1960 Calwell became leader of the Labor Party and Leader of the Opposition.

He contested the federal elections of 1961, 1963 and 1966 against Sir Robert Menzies and later Harold Holt but was unable to win government.

He also strongly opposed Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War. His stance in this regard contributed to Labor’s heavy defeat in 1966.

Calwell retired from Parliament in 1972 after more than thirty years of public service and died the following year.

He is remembered as the architect of Australia’s modern immigration program and the politician who helped bring millions of post-war migrants to Australia.

At the same time, he was one of the most prominent defenders of the White Australia Policy and many of his statements on race are viewed today as incompatible with contemporary Australian values.

His career therefore occupies a contested place in Australian history.

He was a nation-builder who transformed Australia through immigration. But he wanted some races to be part of that transformation while keeping other races firmly outside it.

This is why the Australian Labor Party today remains rather silent on Calwell and why most Labor MPs find it hard to mention his name