Lidia Thorpe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lidia Thorpe
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Thorpe in 2020
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| Senator for Victoria | |
| Assumed office 4 September 2020 |
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| Preceded by | Richard Di Natale |
| Deputy Leader of the Greens in the Senate | |
| In office 10 June 2022 – 20 October 2022 |
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| Leader | Adam Bandt |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly for Northcote | |
| In office 18 November 2017 – 24 November 2018 |
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| Preceded by | Fiona Richardson |
| Succeeded by | Kat Theophanous |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Lidia Alma Thorpe
18 August 1973 Carlton, Victoria, Australia |
| Political party | Independent (since 2023) |
| Other political affiliations |
Greens (until 2023) |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Alma Thorpe (grandmother) Robbie Thorpe (uncle) |
| Signature |  |
Lidia Alma Thorpe (born 18 August 1973) is an Aboriginal Australian independent politician. She has been a senator for Victoria since 2020. She is the first Aboriginal senator from that state.
Lidia Thorpe was a member of the Australian Greens party until February 2023. She left the party due to disagreements about the proposed Indigenous Voice to Parliament. She became a key supporter of the "progressive No" campaign for the Voice referendum in October 2023. Thorpe also served as the Greens' deputy leader in the Senate from June to October 2022.
Before becoming a senator, Thorpe was a member of the Victorian Parliament. She was the first known Aboriginal woman elected to Victoria's state parliament. She represented the area of Northcote in the Legislative Assembly from 2017 to 2018. Thorpe is known for supporting the Blak Sovereign Movement. She also speaks about the history of colonialism in Australia.
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Early Life and Education
Lidia Alma Thorpe was born in 1973 in Carlton, Victoria. She has European, DjabWurrung, Gunnai, and Gunditjmara heritage.
She grew up in Collingwood and went to primary school there. She attended high school for a few years but left at age 14. Lidia enjoyed playing Australian rules football and netball. She says she was very competitive in sports.
Her first job was helping her uncle Robbie Thorpe at the Koori Information Centre in Fitzroy. This place was a busy spot for Aboriginal political activities. Lidia says she has worked almost continuously since then. She has a Diploma of Community Development and other certificates in leadership and public sector management. She became a single mother at 17.
Early Career and Community Work
Lidia Thorpe has worked in many community roles. She was an Aboriginal employment adviser for the Municipal Association of Victoria. She also led the Lakes Entrance Basketball Association for three years.
She was involved with the school council of the Nowa Nowa Primary School. She also worked as a project manager for the East Gippsland Shire Council. She managed Indigenous programs at Centrelink and the Lake Tyers Aboriginal Training Centre.
From 2014 to 2017, Thorpe was a co-chair of the Victorian NAIDOC Committee. This committee helps celebrate the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Victorian Parliament Role
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Lidia Thorpe won the seat of Northcote in the 2017 by-election on 18 November 2017. She became a member of parliament on 28 November 2017.
As a member of the Australian Greens Victoria, she focused on several areas. These included Aboriginal Justice, Consumer Affairs, Skills and Training, Sport, and Mental Health.
In May 2018, she organized an important meeting at the Parliament of Victoria. Aboriginal Elders gathered to talk about treaty processes in Victoria. Thorpe wanted to see treaties that recognized the many Aboriginal clans in Victoria. She said, "Our sovereignty and each of our language groups and our Clans must be clearly recognised." The elders agreed to form a council.
Thorpe supported the Victorian Government's 2018 treaty bill. However, she continued to push for clan sovereignty to be recognized. Thorpe lost her seat in the 2018 Victorian state election. Her term ended on 19 December 2018.
Becoming a Senator
In June 2020, Lidia Thorpe was chosen by Victorian Greens members to fill a vacant seat in the federal Senate. This seat became open when former leader Richard Di Natale resigned.
She was officially appointed to the Senate on 4 September 2020. She was sworn in on 6 October 2020. This made her the first Aboriginal woman to represent Victoria in the Senate. She was also the first Aboriginal federal parliamentarian from the Greens party.
After the May 2022 federal election, Thorpe was re-elected. She was then chosen by the Greens party as its deputy leader in the Senate.
Important Moments as a Senator
In May 2021, Thorpe spoke in Parliament about new bail laws in the Northern Territory. She later apologized for a comment she made about the Attorney-General of the Northern Territory.
In December 2021, Thorpe made a remark during a Senate discussion. She later apologized for her "inappropriate remarks."
In June 2022, Thorpe said in an interview that the parliament has "no permission to be here [in Australia]." She stated she was a parliament member "only" to "infiltrate" the "colonial project." She also said the Australian flag had "no permission to be" in the land. Other senators criticized these comments.
When she was sworn in as a senator, Thorpe was asked to repeat an oath. She added extra words to the oath, saying "I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to the Queen, so help me God, her colonizing Queen." She was told to repeat the oath correctly. She then recited it without the extra words.
Leaving the Greens Party
On 20 October 2022, Lidia Thorpe resigned from her position as the Greens' deputy leader in the Senate.
On 6 February 2023, Thorpe announced she would leave the Greens party. She became an independent senator. She explained that she wanted to fully represent the Blak Sovereign Movement. She felt she could not do this from within the Greens party.
The 2023 Voice Referendum
- Further information: Uluru Statement from the Heart and 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum
In 2023, Australians voted in a referendum about an Indigenous Voice to Parliament. This was the first referendum since 1999. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described it as a way to give Indigenous people a say in policies that affect them.
However, not all Indigenous Australians supported the proposal. Lidia Thorpe called the Indigenous Voice proposal "nothing but cheap window dressing." She said it was a "distraction from the keys to real change: Truth-telling and the recognition of Indigenous sovereignty." She became a key figure in the "Progressive No" campaign. The referendum was held on 14 October 2023. The proposal was rejected by 60.06% of voters.
Recent Events
In June 2024, during a parliamentary hearing, Thorpe questioned how some funding was used. She asked if a grant had been used to build a "holiday house" for another Indigenous politician, Marion Scrymgour. Scrymgour denied the claim and said she would take legal action against Thorpe for defamation.
On 21 October 2024, Thorpe shouted at King Charles III during his visit to Australia's Parliament House. She yelled, "This is not your land, you are not my King." She also made claims of genocide against "our people." An Aboriginal elder present called Thorpe's actions "disrespectful." The Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition also criticized her actions.
Thorpe was later asked about the oath she took when she became a senator. She had sworn allegiance to Queen Elizabeth II and "her heirs." Thorpe claimed she had said "her hairs" by mistake. She later said she "mispronounced" heirs without meaning to.
On 18 November 2024, the Australian Senate formally criticized Thorpe's actions. This "censure" passed with 46 votes to 12. It described her actions as "disrespectful and disruptive." A censure is a symbolic political action and does not have legal power.
On 27 November 2024, Thorpe was suspended from the Senate for the rest of the year. This happened after a disagreement with another senator, Pauline Hanson. Thorpe was said to have shouted and thrown paper. She also raised her middle finger as she left. The next morning, she returned to the Senate through the press gallery and yelled "Free Palestine." She later said the Senate was a "very violent workplace."
Community Roles and Interests
Lidia Thorpe has held various community roles. She was a delegate for the Lakes Entrance Aboriginal Education Consultative Group. She was also the Victorian representative for The Smith Family, a charity that helps children in need. She co-chaired the Victorian NAIDOC Committee.
Activism
Thorpe supports the Pay the Rent campaign. This campaign asks non-Aboriginal Australians to voluntarily pay reparations to an organization of the same name.
Thorpe has been critical of the Uluru Statement from the Heart. She believes there should be a treaty before an Indigenous voice to government. She led a walk-out from the Uluru convention. She felt it did not truly represent the wishes of ordinary Indigenous people.
On Australia Day 2019, Thorpe organized a special dawn service. It was held at the Kings Domain Resting Place. This event was a day of mourning and reflection on the colonisation of Australia. Both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people attended.
On 25 February 2023, Thorpe protested during the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade. She walked in front of a police float and shouted slogans. She then lay down in front of the float. The parade was temporarily stopped. She eventually walked away without being arrested.
In March 2023, footage showed Thorpe being tackled by a police officer. This happened during a protest outside Parliament House. Thorpe was part of a group protesting against an anti-transgender rights rally. Australia's Attorney-General investigated the incident. Thorpe said the police action was an assault.
Award
Lidia Thorpe received the Fellowship for Indigenous Leadership in 2008.
Personal Life and Family
Lidia Thorpe's grandmother, Alma Thorpe, helped start the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service in 1973. She was also involved in setting up the Aboriginal Tent Embassy.
Lidia's mother, Marjorie Thorpe, was a co-commissioner for the Stolen Generations inquiry. This inquiry produced the Bringing Them Home report in the 1990s. She was also a member of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation.
Both Alma and her mother, Edna Brown, were Koori activists. Edna was moved from the Framlingham Aboriginal Reserve in 1932 at age 15. She later became a community activist.
Lidia Thorpe's sister is Meriki Onus. She helped create the Warriors of Aboriginal Resistance (WAR) collective. This group was important in the Australian Aboriginal Sovereignty movement. Her uncle is activist Robbie Thorpe. He is linked to early struggles for Aboriginal Australian self-determination. He is also involved with the Pay The Rent campaign.
Lidia Thorpe became a single mother at 17. She has three children and four grandchildren. She enjoys playing Australian rules football and netball.
Images for kids
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Lidia Thorpe in 2020
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Lidia Thorpe's signature
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Thorpe at a rally in Melbourne in 2019
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Thorpe being sworn into parliament in October 2020
