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There are some special events to honour William Cooper this 6 December. At the Israel and German embassies in Canberra, a plaque honouring him will be erected on the adjoining fence of the embassies, an amazing gesture of solidarity.

Also, the Zionist Federation of Australia and a Christian group, United with William Cooper, of which I am a part, are organising events. You can register for the latter here. Michael McDonogh and Alice Young, the family of William Cooper, united with faith leaders from the Anglican, Baptist, and Pentecostal churches, Michael Pearce, the Hon Consul General of Germany, and former senator Nova Peris OAM, are making a stand for social cohesion.

There is a song William Cooper sang that touches the soul of oppressed people, particularly those of faith. It is Ngarra Burra Ferra, a Yorta Yorta (Aboriginal) version of a Negro spiritual or gospel song. Yet this again is based on two songs of deliverance from Exodus 15 – the Song of Moses or Song of the Sea and the Song of Miriam, his sister. Ngarra Burra Ferra became popular after it was sung in the 2012 Australian movie The Sapphires.

Defender of the Jews

Before I talk about the amazing story of the song, the reason William Cooper, a Christian Aboriginal, is so loved by Jewish people is that he led the Australian Aborigines’ League, which he had formed and was made up mostly of his Yorta Yorta countrymen, on a protest against “the cruel persecution of Jews.” On 6 December 1938, he led them from his home in Footscray to the German Consulate in Melbourne to protest Kristallnacht, the start of the Holocaust.

On Kristallnacht or Pogromnacht in Germany, Austria and Sudetenland, mobs of Nazis rampaged through the streets, burning or shattering the windows of Jewish homes, synagogues and businesses. At least 91 Jews were killed, and 30,000 were hauled off to concentration camps. It was a nightmare, and unfortunately, we are seeing our nation and others progressing down this path of Jew-hatred and antisemitism.

That is why, this 6 December 2024 in Melbourne, Christians and others are gathering to hold an event in honour of William Cooper and to call the silent majority, particularly Christians, to stand up and be counted and call for social cohesion, not hatred of Jews we have seen on our streets and universities. Jews and others have been reenacting William Cooper’s Walk for years, holding events on 6 December. This time, it is the turn of Christians to turn out.

Abe Schwarz and I organised a reenactment in 2012 when I launched my book William Cooper Gentle Warrior in Melbourne. Many Holocaust survivors and children of survivors, Aboriginal people and Christians joined in. Uncle Boydie (Alf Turner), grandson of William Cooper, handed a replica of the League’s protest letter that was not accepted in 1938. In a very touching moment, the Hon. German Consul Michael Pearce, said sorry, and tears broke out everywhere.

These were the closing remarks of my address to the Sydney Jewish Museum in 2012 when I launched the same book there:

“If William Cooper were here today, what would he do on 6 December? I believe he would be leading a march to the United Nations headquarters to protest their strong bias against Israel.

I believe William Cooper would be telling the UN that the Jewish people have a right to exist, to live and to love without fear of terror, with secure borders, and not giving up land for peace. I believe he would say that Jewish people have a right to live without threats from states and terror groups who want to wipe them off the face of the earth…

I believe if William Cooper had been here and marched on 6 December this year, he would have been saying Jewish people have the right to live in peace; Jewish people have the right to live without fear; Jewish people have the right to live and love in safety. That would be his message.

Let his voice speak, over the generations, to us today, just as he stood up for his own people and the Jewish people, Black Americans, the Maoris and others. As he was a gentle warrior for human rights around the globe, let us become part of his story and take up that legacy today.”

Freedom from Slavery

As the Yorta Yorta people were used to singing this song, did they sing it in their protest walk to the German Consulate to protest Kristallnacht in 1938? It is possible, as songs are usually used in these circumstances to inspire people and bring solidarity. Amazingly, the song was performed by the Yorta Yorta at the Centenary of Melbourne concert in May 1937.

The song is called Drowned Old Pharaoh’s Army. The first verse goes with Burra Ferra, meaning Boss Pharaoh:

“When Moses struck the waters
The waters came together
And drowned (old) boss Pharaoh’s army, Alleluia.”

There is another translation called Turn Back Pharaoh’s Army. So how did this songline reach from the Red Sea to an Aboriginal group by the Murray River in Australia? And how did it travel that vast distance in time, nearly 4,000 years?

The black slaves on the cotton plantations of the USA had a deep faith in the Lord of the Bible and a desperate need for freedom from persecution and slavery. They had a burning desire to find their “Promised Land” of living in dignity, liberty and equality. The story of Exodus struck a strong chord in their spirits. The whips of the oppressors in Egypt and the USA could have broken their spirits, but the songs of freedom, including the Negro spirituals, kept their hope alive. This song was one of them.

At Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, a university established for freed slaves, a group of black American singers called the Fisk Jubilee group went on a world tour singing gospel songs. They came to Australia and were invited to the Aboriginal mission of Maloga in 1887, most likely by missionary Daniel Mathews, who was strongly opposed to slavery and a champion of Aboriginal rights. They joined hearts with the Yorta Yorta people.

By joining in the event on 6 December and promoting this story, we in our generation can be a part of turning back Pharoah’s army of Jew-haters. We can see the waters parted, so that those faithful to the word of God and Judeo-Christian values can march through to a better future, our “Promised Land”, and see antisemitism drowned.

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This article contains excerpts from and current comment on the book Shattered Lives, Broken Dreams: William Cooper and Australian Aborigines Protest Holocaust. There is a sale of these books till 6 December at Indigenous Friends of Israel.

Image courtesy of Common Grace.