I come from a northern English working class background and came to Australia at 9 years old as a “ten pound Pom”. With grandparents on both sides who were staunch Labour (UK) voters all their lives but aspirational parents who came here to better themselves, from the time I turned 18 I was a Labor voter, no question. I moved to Canberra and joined the Australian Public Service at 23 and like most young public servants of my generation, I remained a Labor voter until the Australian Democrats came along. At that point I started to vote differently in the Senate. By 2001 I was in the Attorney-General’s Department and was a rep on various interdepartmental committees, including one relating to refugees. When Tampa happened I was horrified, when offshore processing followed, even more so. I was relieved when the Labor govt suspended offshore processing in 2008.
Then in August 2012 Labor resumed offshore processing. I was done. I have been a Greens voter ever since.
I retired from the APS in January 2016. I had managed to last through the Abbott government but my agency was about to move into the Home Affairs portfolio. I couldn’t stomach Dutton as my Minister. I immediately joined the Greens. Refugee policy brought me here, but I stayed for broader social justice reasons. I got involved in election campaigns and knew I’d found my tribe. I was persuaded to stand for Council because I believe in community and it is community that keeps me there. I’m no politician, but at heart I am still a public servant and this is where I am called to serve right now.
Liz Atkins