Fred Paterson

Frederick Woolnough Paterson (1897-1977) was an Australian politician. He was the only member of a Communist party ever to be elected to a parliament anywhere in Australia.

Early history

Paterson was born and raised in Gladstone, Queensland. He studied classics at the University of Queensland, before joining the military when the First World War broke out. He subsequently saw action on the battlefields of France. While in France, he was involved in two food-related strikes, which were both successful

In January, 1920, Paterson moved to Oxford to study theology, after becoming a Rhodes Scholar. However, by the time he sat for his honours degree in 1922, his belief in Christianity had changed. He had witnessed extreme poverty in Ireland and parts of London, and this concerned him. Not long after returning to Queensland, Paterson joined the Communist Party of Australia.

Paterson began studying law in 1923. By 1924, he was giving lectures on Marxism. Then, in 1925, he began working for the Workers' Education Association. This saw him addressing unions, giving lectures on the history of the working-class, and trying to increase the association's membership.

Politics and the Communist Party

In 1931, Paterson was finally admitted to the Bar. He based himself in Brisbane, but later that year went to Townsville to defend two Italian workers, who were charged with assaulting the Italian consul. As the Great Depression set in, Paterson became involved in fighting racist employment policies in the sugar industry. At the time, the unions and employer associations had a policy of refusing employment to Italian workers in order to combat unemployment in the industry. Paterson led a campaign by both the Communist Party and the Italian community and was successful in ending the practice. In 1933, Paterson left Brisbane completely, and set up in Townsville. He spent his time juggling both a part-time legal career and his burgeoning role as a traveling activist for the Communist Party. By this time, he had gained a reputation as a fine public speaker.

During the late 1930s, the Communist Party continued to grow rapidly in North Queensland, with Paterson at the forefront. He played a significant role in the union movement in the sugar industry during a key strike over workplace conditions, and became involved in the anti-fascist movement.

In 1939, Paterson stood successfully as an alderman for the Townsville City Council, becoming the first member of the Communist Party to win such an office in Australia. He was then re-elected in 1943. The same year, he stood for the federal seat of Herbert, but was narrowly defeated.

The next year, he again made history, when at his third attempt, he won the state seat of Bowen at the 1944 election. While Paterson had polled slightly behind his rival in Bowen itself, he was far in front in the mining and sugar-farming areas, which resulted in a significant victory.

Demonstrations

After being elected to Parliament, Paterson largely gave up the law, in order to concentrate on his political career. He continued being actively involved in public issues, particularly through the union movement, and was a vocal critic of the government of the time. He would often make speeches at the Domain in central Brisbane. Paterson was rewarded, retaining his seat at the 1947 state election. During the 1948 railway strike, he would regularly join the picket line in the mornings before going to sit in Parliament. He also gave the picketers legal advice. Paterson knew that the police had the power to order the picketers to move, but that they did not have the power to order them where exactly to move. He then devised a strategy where, as they were moved on by the police, the picketers would simply move around the block.

On St. Patrick's Day, 1948, near Central station in Brisbane, Paterson intervened to stop a police officer who was assaulting a demonstrator. He was then struck from behind by another officer, and was rushed to hospital in an ambulance, unconscious. Paterson was unable to do any political activity for some months afterwards. An inquiry into the incident found that no wrongdoing had occurred and no police officer was ever arrested or charged with the assault.

End of political career

At the state election of 1950, Paterson's electorate was disbanded, and split amongst several others. At the time, Prime Minister Robert Menzies was launching his anti-Communist campaign, and was introducing legislation which would have prevented Communists from holding public office. Paterson lost his seat at this election, which can perhaps be attributed to the political climate of the time.

His defeat at the 1950 election largely ended Paterson's political career. However, he was involved in the successful campaign against Menzies' anti-Communist measures, and he continued to be involved in the union movement and Communist Party right up until his death in 1977.

Biography

*Ross Fitzgerald: "The Peoples Champion: Fred Paterson- Australia's Only Communist Party Member of Parliament": St Lucia, Queensland: 1997: ISBN 0-7022-2959-8

External links

# [http://agitprop.org.au/lefthistory/196608_tl_fred_patterson.php Biographical article from the 1960s]
# [http://agitprop.org.au/lefthistory/1986_henderson_the_election_of_fred_patterson.php Article on Fred's successful election campaign]