Gandhi’s importance in the Western world, and his interaction with foreign visitors, have been well-documented. However, most of these accounts have focused on Britain and the United States. Today, as India’s diaspora grows in numbers and influence, the inspiration of Gandhi in other parts of the world needs to be understood, This is particularly true of Australia.
In Gandhi’s Australia, Australia’s Gandhi. Thomas Weber takes readers on a journey examining Gandhi’s perceptions of Australia and the ways in which Australians came to understand him.
Through meticulous research, Weber details Gandhi’s portrayal in Australia from his days in South Africa to the ‘freedom rides’ of indigenous Australians in the 1960s. He explains how his philosophy and teachings influenced Australian peace, environmental, religious, and aid movements.
Thomas Weber is an Honorary Associate, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, La Trobe University, Melbourne. He is the author of On the Salt March, Gandhi as Disciple and Mentor and Going Native: Gandhi's Relationship with Western Women.
Abbreviations Acknowledgements Foreword Rajmohan Gandhi A Personal Introduction
1. Background: Gandhi and the World
Gandhi: A Brief Introduction The Mahatma and the World America’s Gandhi Britain’s Gandhi
2. Gandhi’s Australia The Issue of Racism Cow Slaughter Other Issues
3. Gandhi and Australians Some Little-Known Visitors Harriet Winifred Ponder Arthur H. Blacket A. B. Piddington Bertram Stevens and a Young War Correspondent Alan Moorehead R. G. Casey Thomas Nesbitt’s Letter to Gandhi
4. Australia’s Gandhi: The Press Depictions South Africa: The First Glimpses Non-Cooperation and the 1920s The Salt March and its Aftermath Towards the End Gandhi after Gandhi Gandhi in the Australian Parliament
5. Australia’s Gandhi: Organisations Gandhi, Peace Movements, and Environmental Campaigns Gandhi and the Quakers Aid Organisations and Gandhi
6. Australia’s Gandhi: People Nonviolent Activism The Australian Gandhian Movement The International Centre of Nonviolence Doing Gandhian Work in India
7. Australia’s Gandhi: The Academy Gandhi in the Academy University Courses and Gandhi Writings on Gandhi Gandhi Orations
8. Australia’s Gandhi: The Public Overseas Gandhian Visitors Gandhi in the Movies Gandhi Statues and Exhibitions Gandhi and the Australian Indian Community
Conclusion
Bibliography Index