In the early 1960’s, I saw bulldozers rip through our Gumatj country in north-east Arnhem Land. I watched my father stand in front of them to stop them clearing sacred trees and saw him chase away the drivers with an axe. I watched him cry when our sacred waterhole was bulldozed. It was one of our Dreamings and a source of our water. I saw a township wreck our beautiful homeland forever. I saw my father suffering physically when this was happening. I can never forget that. This land is something that is always yours; it doesn’t matter what nature or politics do to change it. We believe the land is all life. So it comes to us that we are part of the land and the land is part of us. It cannot be one or the other. We cannot be separated by anything or anybody.
Yunupingu, G. (1997) From the bark petition to native title. In: Yunupingu,G., (ed.). 1997. Our land is our life: land rights – past, present and future University of Queensland Press, St Lucia. Australia. pp.1-17.