‘People shook my hand’: the Indigenous man who spoke his mind at Liberal MP’s voice forum

Phil Dotti at home in Sydney. He says that after he spoke on stage at Wednesday’s voice forum, people told him ‘it was a great speech and we wanted to hear more – that was comforting’. Photograph: Carly Earl/The Guardian

Phil Dotti says he’s spent his life being told to be quiet. But the Gumbayngirr-Dhungutti man says that only strengthened his resolve to stand up for what he believes in.

So after listening to non-Indigenous people talk about the Indigenous voice to parliament for an hour and 40 minutes at a public forum, Dotti decided it was time to speak up.