George Gotsis is widely known as the Godfather of May Day in Sydney keeping it alive for the past four decades. At the celebration organised by the MUA Sydney Branch for his 80th birthday he said:
"I'm very proud to be a member of the Maritime Union and proud to continue the working class struggle,'" he said. "The best days of the worker are the days of struggle."
George recalled his first years in Australia in the sixties working at BHP in Port Kembla, organising Greek immigrant workers.
"We were all unskilled workers from southern Europe," he said. "The job was dangerous and young workers were burnt and injured. We had to organise ourselves and the first progressive union leader I met was Snowy Webster from the Seamen's Union."
In 1964 George got a tip off from the local wharfies' branch jobs going on the Sydney wharves. Soon after began organizing black bans on Greek shipping to protest the military junta and the arrest of Greek maritime union leaders. Maritime unions slapped 48 bans on five ships.
"EV Elliot said we'd continue the bans until the people won freedom in Greece," George recalled.
So it was no surprise when George made his first application for citizenship under the conservative government it was rejected.
"In 1966 I made an application of citizenship," he said. "And here's what they said: 'Your application for naturalisation as an Australian citizen has been received but after careful consideration, the minister has decided your application is not acceptable.'"
A couple of years later George tried again. And again it was refused. In 1969 the outcome was the same.
"With the election of the Whitlam Government in 1972 and Al Grasby becoming minister for immigration George was confident his application would not be rejected again. But it was. This time it did not even reach the minister. The department rejected the application.
So George went to his union and a call went through with the message that if George Gotsis was not made an Australian citizen within the week they'd stop all the ships.
"In three days I was a citizen," said George.
George recalled his first years in Australia in the sixties working at BHP in Port Kembla, organising Greek immigrant workers.
"We were all unskilled workers from southern Europe," he said. "The job was dangerous and young workers were burnt and injured. We had to organise ourselves and the first progressive union leader I met was Snowy Webster from the Seamen's Union."
In 1964 George got a tip off from the local wharfies' branch jobs going on the Sydney wharves. Soon after began organizing black bans on Greek shipping to protest the military junta and the arrest of Greek maritime union leaders. Maritime unions slapped 48 bans on five ships.
"EV Elliot said we'd continue the bans until the people won freedom in Greece," George recalled.
So it was no surprise when George made his first application for citizenship under the conservative government it was rejected.
"In 1966 I made an application of citizenship," he said. "And here's what they said: 'Your application for naturalisation as an Australian citizen has been received but after careful consideration, the minister has decided your application is not acceptable.'"
A couple of years later George tried again. And again it was refused. In 1969 the outcome was the same.
"With the election of the Whitlam Government in 1972 and Al Grasby becoming minister for immigration George was confident his application would not be rejected again. But it was. This time it did not even reach the minister. The department rejected the application.
So George went to his union and a call went through with the message that if George Gotsis was not made an Australian citizen within the week they'd stop all the ships.
"In three days I was a citizen," said George.
