2004 Australian riots

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The Redfern riot occurred on February 14, 2004 in Redfern sparked by the death of Thomas 'TJ' Hickey, a 17 year old Australian Aborigine.

The teenager, riding home on his bicycle from his girlfriend's house, was allegedly chased by a police vehicle and subsequently impaled on a fence.

Members of his family were then reported to have started grieving for the child around Eveleigh Street, outside Redfern train station with a crowd gathering commiserating with the family. Fliers were distributed blaming police for the death. The police closed the Eveleigh Street entrance to the station but youths in the crowd had turned violent and begun to throw bricks and bottles. This violence then escalated into a full-scale riot around The Block and into Darlington, lasting all night. 40 police officers were injured.

The police denied that they were present and a subsequent inquest found that they were following Hickey, but that this had not caused the accident.

A memorial service was held on February 19, 2004, in Redfern, and in Walgett, New South Wales (Hickey's hometown), on February 22, 2004.

Later that year, on 26 November, riots broke out on Palm Island, off the Queensland coast, after the death of a 36 year old Aboriginal man in police custody.

The riots have sparked fresh debate into the welfare of Australian Aborigines and the response of the police to those living in the Redfern area. Redfern police have however called for greater police numbers to quash what was called "civil disobedience", which may further inflame Aboriginal leaders.