Dr George Duncan and groundbreaking law changes in South Australia

In March 1972, Dr George Ian Ogilvie Duncan, then aged 41, arrived in Australia to take up his new position at the Adelaide Law School. On the evening of 10^th of May 1972, barely six weeks later, Dr Duncan and another man were pushed into the River Torrens. Dr Duncan could not swim and drowned in the cold water.

The Coroner’s inquest in June 1972 found that Dr Duncan’s death had been caused by violence inflicted by unknown persons. During the inquest two members of the vice squad refused to answer questions. They, along with one other detective, were suspended from the force and later resigned. A subsequent investigation by police failed to identify any suspects. By that point, Dr Duncan’s death had begaun to gain widespread public interest, bringing broader issues of homosexuality, discrimination, and police corruption into the national spotlight.

Professor Horst Lucke, then-head of the Adelaide Law School took up the fight in the tumult that followed the killing and “publicly advocated for law changes, defended Dr Duncan’s reputation, and met in secret with gay men desperate to have their voices heard and who’d been moved enough by the death to push past their fears and join the growing groundswell calling for change”¹.

The tragedy eventually led to groundbreaking law changes in South Australia and the University was instrumental in the campaign.

In 1975, South Australian premier Don Dunstan, decriminalised homosexual acts between consenting males and brought the age of consent into line with heterosexual couples - becoming the first state in the country to do so.

Dr Duncan’s death was an important moment in Australian history. The University annually contemplates the memory of Dr Duncan and reflects on his legacy. 

The above text is adapted from the following blog post: University community remembers George Duncan

Bibliography

1. Denham, Stan 2022, ‘University community remembers George Duncan’. University of Adelaide. 1 March, viewed 4 May 2022, https://www.adelaide.edu.au/newsroom/news/list/2022/03/01/university-community-remembers-george-duncan-0

2. Duncan, J 2017, ‘How the killing of a gay academic changed Australia’. BBC News. 14 November, viewed 23 March 2022, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-41964671

3. Reeves, T 2006, Duncan, George Ian (1930–1972), Australian Dictionary of Biography, Australian National University, viewed 23 March 2022, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/duncan-george-ian-10063/text17751