This pivotal moment inspired thousands of memes, music remixes, reaction videos, and even a few tattoos. Democracy Manifest is also the name of a thoroughbred Australian racehorse.
Carlson's family confirmed that he passed away Wednesday surrounded by his loved ones in a hospital after battling prostate cancer.
“He walked a full and colorful path and lived by the motto to keep smiling, no matter the hardships that came his way,” they said in a statement.
Carlson once again captured the attention of the national media in June, when he was reunited with the officer who arrested him that fateful day, Stallwatt, to produce a documentary about his ambiguous and eccentric life.
Although Carlson was a convicted felon, he has maintained that the 1991 incident was a case of mistaken identity.
“They thought I was an international gangster,” he said at the time.
“That's the typical way the police catch you. If they can do something to you, they will.”
In a recent interview with ABC News, Carlson described his long life as an adventure, reportedly including three prison escapes, several run-ins with the authorities and even a stint as the owner of one of Brisbane’s most prolific restaurants, Dine & Dasher.
But those who knew him say his childhood was a tragedy akin to that of Charles Dickens, a childhood spent in and out of nursing homes and government institutions.
After news of his death broke, tributes flooded social media.
“Sad news. Mr. Democracy Declaration has passed away. The cultural icon whose arrest led to thousands of t-shirts and millions of downloads was suffering from advanced cancer,” Chris Leeson, a reporter who covered the now infamous brawl, wrote on X.
“His immortal words will echo through generations.”
Mr Watt, who developed a close friendship with Carlson after reuniting with him, remembered the 82-year-old as a “larger than life” man with a “big heart.”
“It's a sad day for Australia. We've just lost a truly colourful character,” he told the ABC.
