AustLit

'In recent years dumping names and persons has become a cottage industry. In some cases ancestral names replace more recent ones. In other cases the current name is seen as objectionable. Generally, I have been unmoved by the debates – I can see arguments for and against. On hearing of a proposal to rename Deakin University, however, I found myself annoyed. But after more reading I saw the force of the proposal. I have a lot of time for Alfred Deakin, the second Australian Prime Minister who led the movement for federation. Deakin, however, also advocated both in Victorian  and later in Federal parliament for policies based on racist theory which have wrecked the lives of Indigenous Australians. So what should the university do?' (Introduction)