Clyde Cameron was born in Murray Bridge, South Australia on 11 February 1914. From 1927 he worked as a Shearer. He joined the Australian Labor Party in 1929. Cameron was an organiser for the Australian Workers' Union in SA in 1938 and became the union's state secretary (1941-49). He was also President, SA Branch of the ALP (1946-48). He was elected to federal Parliament as the member for Hindmarsh in 1949, and spent 23 years in Opposition before becoming a minister in the first Whitlam government in 1972. He was Minister for Labour (1972-74); Minister for Labour and Immigration (1974-75); Minister for Science and Consumer Affairs (1974-75). In 1975 he was a Delegate at the UN General Assembly. Cameron was awarded an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1982 and life membership of the ALP in 2006. Cameron died on 14 March 2008.