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- 25 May 2006
John Marsden
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Page: 481
Mr STEVEN CHAYTOR (Macquarie Fields) [5.35 p.m.]: I speak to the legacy left by a leading constituent, John Robert Marsden, AM, of Denham Court. John Marsden passed away on 17 May 2006 aged 64 while on holiday in Turkey. Many individuals and organisations in south-western Sydney were influenced and improved by John Marsden's personal dedication to justice. His legacy will always remain relevant to the lives of future generations through the homosexual equality that he championed, through the law firm that he started and through being south-western Sydney's leading patron of the arts.
My first experiences with law and politics, like many other community leaders around Australia, was associated with John Marsden. One of my first jobs was to work for Marsdens in Campbelltown. John Marsden was the first person outside the Australian Labor Party to encourage and promote my involvement in politics. He did this by telling me to resign if I wanted to stand as a Labor candidate for Campbelltown council, and I did. John Marsden constantly remained committed to law and politics as devices to make a better world. There was no place that John wanted that better world to start than Campbelltown. I know the honourable member for Campbelltown and the honourable member for Camden would agree with that assessment.
In the same way that John Marsden's virtues were far greater than the average man, so were his vices. However, beneath John Marsden's bohemian style was a soul deeply committed to civil liberties and access to justice. Marsden was complex, controversial, passionate and intelligent. He added persona to polite conversation. Beneath Marsden's loud, confronting and sometimes obnoxious style were words that provided a voice for segments of the population unable to be heard. When I worked for Marsden the following statement was displayed prominently in his office:
In Germany they first came for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.
Then they came for me and by that time no-one was left to speak up.
John Marsden was always outspoken. He was always a voice for freedom against discrimination. He loved art and was the driving force for the contributions by the State Government and Campbelltown and Liverpool councils to the recently opened Campbelltown Arts Centre and Casula Powerhouse. John Marsden was chairman of both those leading art institutes. He will be most remembered and most missed at the opening of the new Casula Powerhouse.
Campbelltown was Marsden's home. However, he performed on a much wider stage. He was President of the New South Wales Council for Civil Liberties and the New South Wales Law Society. He was board member of the Anti-Discrimination Board and the Police Board. In recent years he recovered from an unjustified attack on his personal life by politicians in this Parliament and by the media. He never recovered from stomach cancer. In his last years John was patron of "A Just Australia", campaigning for the rights of refugees. The week he passed away he wrote a letter to all Campbelltown councillors persuading them to work harder to protect a heritage building in his beloved city.
Phone calls from John Marsden happened too early in the morning. I always called back at a more polite hour. Marsden's voice mail was always entertaining and provocative. Today, for the last time, I rang to listen to his last voice message:
Hi, it's John Marsden. Well, life's not that good at the moment. Howard let us down, there's no protection of Human Rights and Civil Liberties. He just follows the leader, follows Bush all the time. Bob Carr gave us 10 years, no infrastructure, no action, nothing. However, there is hope for Australia. Pray for Australia. Don't pray for America, it's a waste of time. Ring me back, my mobile is on all the time. Good luck, God Bless, John Marsden.
In typical Marsden passion and style there is enough there for all of us to agree and disagree. John Marsden remained steadfastly committed to public causes, despite the increasing toll on his health, to the end. His family, his friends, his colleagues, his clients, his community and his local member of Parliament will miss him. Vale John Marsden.
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