Community Legal Centres Australia

03/06/2026

BREAKING: Independent MPs have mounted a push for a Human Rights Act in Federal Parliament.

The Bill was introduced to the House of Representatives this morning by .wilkie.mp and seconded by Dr MP.

An Australian Human Rights Act would articulate what fundamental human rights are available to people, center people in government decision-making and ensure respect and dignity for all.

More than 170 organisations are backing the call for a federal Act.

Join the call for an Australian Human Rights Act at the link in bio.

31/05/2026

You don't secure a safety net by cutting holes in it. You don't rush life-threatening decisions.

We call on the Federal Government to delay implementation of changes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme until genuine consultation has occurred, and alternative supports can be resourced and rolled out.

Read the statement on our website: https://clcs.org.au/sector-statement-ndis-bill/

Add your organisation's sign-on: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/8pMPPBLdui

29/05/2026

All people deserve equal opportunities to participate in the community, and to live freely and safely.

Email your MP: https://transjustice.org.au/rights/

Sign the petition: https://equalityaustralia.org.au/hands-off-our-protections

Right now, trans and gender diverse people are facing significant threats to their rights and protections.

Following a Federal Court ruling earlier this month that transgender people have the right to be protected from discrimination, there are now attempts at the federal level to weaken anti-discrimination protections in the S*x Discrimination Act.

This would harm not only transgender people, but also cisgender women, intersex people, and people who are gender non-conforming.

We support strong anti-discrimination protections for LGBTIQ+ people and women.

If you do, too, then here are two ways you can take action:
*Trans Justice Project is encouraging all people who want to protect the S*x Discrimination Act to email their federal MP - https://transjustice.org.au/rights/

*Equality Australia has launched a petition to all federal parliamentarians calling on them to stand with LGBTIQ+ people and women - https://equalityaustralia.org.au/hands-off-our-protections

28/05/2026

Every Australian Counts has shared an explainer on the huge proposed changes to the NDIS and why now is a time when everyone must speak up.

Check it out:

Every Australian Counts is here to make sure the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is delivered as promised and is the best it can be. Find out how the NDIS process works and hear real stories from people who have been through the process, and keep up to date with the NDIS rollout with lat...

28/05/2026

People With Disability Australia has shared some of the ways everyone can help stop the NDIS cuts, including:
*Signing their petition
*Emailing your MP and ask them to protect the NDIS
*Sharing your story and show what the NDIS makes possible

Read more:

The NDIS funds reasonable and necessary supports that make ordinary life possible. Cuts put people at risk. Act now to protect the NDIS.

28/05/2026

The open letter from National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Services (NATSILS) calling on the Prime Minister to address the mass incarceration of First Nations children has received over 1,100 signatories. It’s time to build on this incredible momentum, and put even more pressure on the Prime Minister to act.

That’s why NATSILS is holding an online event, “Real safety, actual justice: Town hall on the youth justice crisis" on Monday 1st June, 1pm - 2pm AEST.
https://events.humanitix.com/natsils-town-hall

At the event, NATSILS will update you on the Prime Minister’s response to the open letter, tell you what they have planned next for the campaign to end the youth justice crisis, and how you can get involved.

27/05/2026

The Queensland Independent Disability Advocacy Network (QIDAN) has launched a new campaign: The DRC Still Matters.

During the Disability Royal Commission, thousands of people with disability shared their experiences of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation – exposing serious failures across systems, institutions and services that were meant to keep people safe.

The Commission made 222 recommendations, but progress has been slow and inconsistent. Many recommendations have not moved at all.

QIDAN initiated an independent analysis of the progress of each recommendation, and found that only 3% of recommendations have been implemented in Queensland.

Read more: https://qidan.org.au/thedrcstillmatters/

27/05/2026

On this day in 1967, more than 90% of people in Australia voted to remove discriminatory clauses from the constitution, and to count Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the census. The successful referendum was a moment when the community was ‘all in’ for justice and progress.

Today marks the start of National Reconciliation Week 2026, and this year’s theme is ‘All In’. It’s a call to action for every person, community, organisation and government to step up and take action to advance First Nations justice.

On this day, we reflect on the progress that’s been made over the past five decades – but also on the many areas in which far more needs to be done, particularly in relation to the legal system.

The ongoing impacts of dispossession, the Stolen Generations, and systemic racism drive poorer outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and yet governments remain reticent to implement much-needed changes to reduce this disparity.

To quote the National Community Legal Centres Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women’s Network:

"First Nations people have provided governments with hundreds of specific recommendations over many decades to reduce the structural drivers of racism: to lower the number of kids being stolen and placed in out-of-home care, to reduce the rates of our people being incarcerated, to prevent suicides, and more.

"And yet, governments consistently and systematically refuse to follow these recommendations, and we see these problems worsening. We are seeing inadequate improvement, stalled progress, our outright regression against key Closing the Gap targets.

"We know the solutions, and so do governments. We are seeing a proliferation of racism against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people not because we don’t know the solutions, but because governments choose to pursue policies and practices that we and they know will worsen these problems."

The work towards reconciliation is for all of us, and it requires a move beyond words and symbolic or performative action. Reconciliation requires genuine action, and not just by First Nations people who have been forced for too long to take on the bulk of the work of fighting for justice and progress.