The Whitlam Legacy
The Whitlam Legacy
Ladies and gentlemen,
On this day, in 1945, the 13th of July, Flight Lieutenant Whitlam had just celebrated his 29th birthday. On that same day in 1945, the 13th July, Ben Chifley became Labor's 7th Prime Minister. It was Chifley who evoked the light on the hill to inspire the Labor movement, but it was Whitlam who became the Light on the Hill for at least two generations of Labor loyalists.
Gough transformed the Labor Party; he modernized it; he again made it electable. Gough Whitlam has never given up on the Labor Party. He has never sold it short. It's been said before that we in the Labor Party live off the heritage of the great men in our history - and it's about time we lived up to their legacy.
