Embattled Queensland MP Billy Gordon says critics have painted him as a person that he is not.
The indigenous MP quit the Labor Party last month over unpaid child support, his undisclosed criminal history and domestic violence allegations.
The Cook MP's past has dominated media reports and political debate since parliament reconvened nine weeks ago.
"I've been in politics long enough to know that the gibes, attacks, name-calling are often part of the theatrics of this place and no malice meant," Mr Gordon told parliament on Thursday.
"But there have been claims and judgments cast that have painted a picture of a person that I am not."
The far north Queensland MP spoke of his impoverished upbringing, his troubled youth and his life struggles as an indigenous man.
Mr Gordon's father was a cane-cutter and his mother a nurse and his family slept in sheds and railway wagons.
He said his teenage years were deeply affected by pressures of society.
"I chose to buy into expectations society had of an Aboriginal boy," Mr Gordon said.
"I caved into peer pressure, I hung around with the wrong crowd, I made excuses."
But the MP knew he wanted something better for his life and came up with a motto, which likely still rings true.
"I will not be defined by my worst moment," he said.
Mr Gordon paid tribute to his family, his five children and his current partner.
The independent also said he still had a "fundamental union" with the Labor Party.
"Rank-and-file members of the Labor Party have believed in me, bled for me and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with me in standing up for the very Australian ideal of a fair go," he said.
Both Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg weren't in the chamber for the speech.
Education Minister Kate Jones, Mines Minister Dr Anthony Lynham and opposition environment spokesman Andrew Powell listened to the speech and shook Mr Gordon's hand afterwards.
Former treasurer Tim Nicholls was there, too, but he avoided shaking hands.
Police are investigating domestic violence allegations against Mr Gordon.
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