Thomas Mayor spent 18 months travelling across Australia with the Uluru Statement to promote a better future for Indigenous Australians. But he didn't make it to the Hunter.
He he made up for that at Newcastle's Harbour View Function Centre on Thursday night when he launched the book born out of his landmark journey of reconciliation.
Finding the Heart of a Nation chronicles hundreds of hours of conversations he had while travelling with the sacred 183 by 160 centimetre canvas in 2017.
"It's an important collective of stories. I wrote it so the ordinary person in Australia could hear from a group of ordinary yet extraordinary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and better understand us," he said.
The 42-year-oldsaid he believed there was a growing movement of Australians and corporations who wanted to enshrine a First Nations voice in the constitution.
"People know this is something hopeful from indigenous people," he said.
"We have talked about constitutional recognition for a long time and from my experience travelling the country for the past two and a half years it's clear people are ready to support it.
Mr Mayor is a Torres Strait Islander man born on Larrakia country in Darwin.
He became a wharf labourer after leaving school and then a Maritime Union of Australia official in his early 30s.
He credits the role with teaching him negotiation and organisational skills, which he applied to his passion of advancing the rights of Indigenous people.
Following the Uluru Convention Mayor was entrusted to carry the canvas of the Uluru Statement from the Heart on an 18 month journey around the country to garner support for a constitutionally enshrined First Nations voice.
The famous canvas is now kept at the University of NSW under the care of Professor Megan Davis.
Mr Mayor said he was deeply disappointed to the federal government's latest proposal to integrate indigenous views into local, state and federal decision-making.
"If we don't constitutionally enshrine what we build this time it won't last. So it is with great disappointment that the government is entering a co-design process that is somewhat asking us to come up with a different answer.... they have ignored what we have called for time and time again. " he said.
"We are going to continue to fight for a constitutionally enshrined voice and we appeal to the Australian people to continue to say to the government you can't just legislate this thing you must take it to a referendum."
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