Charles Nelson Perkins, usually known as Charlie Perkins, was an Aboriginal Australian activist, soccer player and administrator. It is claimed he was the first known Indigenous Australian man to graduate tertiary education. He is known for his instigation and organisation of the 1965 Freedom Ride and his key role in advocating for a "yes" vote in the 1967 Aboriginals referendum. He had a long career as a public servant.

The Freedom Ride of 1965 was a journey undertaken by a group of Aboriginal Australians in a bus across New South Wales, led by Charles Perkins. Its aim was to bring to the attention of the public the extent of racial discrimination in Australia, and it was a significant event in the history of civil rights for Indigenous Australians.