Vale Uncle Lionel Fogarty
February 17, 2026
Copyright Agency acknowledges the passing of Uncle Lionel Fogarty, a proud Mununjali man of the Yugambeh Nation, an award-winning poet, activist and valued member of our community.
Over more than four decades, Uncle Lionel made a significant contribution to Australian literature. From his first collection Kargun (1980) to Harvest Lingo, his fourteenth collection, his work challenged and expanded the possibilities of language, foregrounding Murri perspectives, Country and justice.
In 2023, Harvest Lingo received the Judith Wright Calanthe Award at the Queensland Literary Awards and was shortlisted for the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards, the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards and the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards. In 2025, he was recognised with a Red Ochre Award for Lifetime Achievement at the First Nations Arts and Culture Awards.
Uncle Lionel’s literary achievements were closely connected to his longstanding advocacy for Land Rights and for justice in response to Black deaths in custody. His influence as a writer and mentor will continue to be felt across Australia’s literary and cultural communities.
We extend our sincere condolences to his family and community.