When Prime Minister Paul Keating took to a podium in Redfern Park on a warm December day in 1992, those present had no idea they would be witnessing history.

Twenty-five years ago to the day, Keating's address, now simply known as the "Redfern Speech" delivered a profound message on Aboriginal injustice.

Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating delivers the emotional speech in Redfern, Sydney, to mark the International Year of the Worlds Indigenous People, 10 December 1992. Credit:Kylie Pickett

"We took the traditional lands and smashed the traditional way of life. We brought the diseases. The alcohol. We committed the murders. We took the children from their mothers," he said.

"With some noble exceptions, we failed to make the most basic human response and enter into their hearts and minds. We failed to ask, how would I feel if this were done to me?"