In 1966, Gurindji elder Vincent Lingiari led his people in a walkout off Wave Hill Cattle Station. The station was built on traditional Gurindji land, but the Gurindji people were treated like slaves and paid little. Nine years after the walkout, the Gurindji people won back their land and control of their lives. The Wave Hill walkout marks the beginning of the Indigenous land rights movement. This struggle continues today.
The Gurindji strike was instrumental in heightening the understanding of First Nations land ownership in Australia and was a catalyst for the passing of the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976, the first legislation allowing for a claim of title if the First Nations claimants could provide evidence for their traditional relationship to the land.
What was the impact? The Wave Hill Walk-Off inspired national change in the form of equal wages for Aboriginal workers, as well as a new land rights act. The Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act was the first attempt by an Australian government to legally recognise First Nations land ownership.
Freedom Day: Vincent Lingiari and the Story of the Wave Hill Walk-Off by
In 1966, more than two hundred courageous Aboriginal people walked off the Wave Hill Cattle Station in the Northern Territory. Led by Vincent Lingiari, these stockmen and their families were walking together to fight for equal pay and land rights.
The story of Vincent Lingiari and the 1966 Wave Hill Walk-Off was immortalised in the iconic song, From Little Things Big Things Grow.
Gather 'round people, I'll tell you a story An eight-year long story of power and pride British Lord Vestey and Vincent Lingiari Were opposite men on opposite sides Vestey was fat with money and muscle Beef was his business, broad was his door Vincent was lean and spoke very little He had no bank balance, hard dirt was his floor
From little things big things grow From little things big things grow
Gurindji were working for nothing but rations Where once they had gathered the wealth of the land Daily the oppression got tighter and tighter Gurindji decided they must make a stand They picked up their swags and started off walking At Wattie Creek they sat themselves down Now it don't sound like much but it sure got tongues talking Back at the homestead and then in the town
From little things big things grow From little things big things grow
Vestey man said, "I'll double your wages 18 quid a week you'll have in your hand" Vincent said, "Uh-uh we're not talking about wages We're sitting right here 'til we get our land" Vestey man roared and Vestey man thundered You don't stand the chance of a cinder in snow Vince said, "If we fall, others are rising"
From little things big things grow From little things big things grow
Then Vincent Lingiari boarded an airplane Landed in Sydney, big city of lights And daily he went 'round softly speaking his story To all kinds of men from all walks of life And Vincent sat down with big politicians "This affair, " they told him "It's a matter of state" "Let us sort it out while your people are hungry" Vincent said, "No thanks, we know how to wait"
From little things big things grow From little things big things grow
Then Vincent Lingiari returned in an airplane Back to his country once more to sit down And he told his people, "Let the stars keep on turning We have friends in the south, in the cities and towns" Eight years went by, eight long years of waiting 'Til one day a tall stranger appeared in the land And he came with lawyers and he came with great ceremony And through Vincent's fingers poured a handful of sand
From little things big things grow From little things big things grow
That was the story of Vincent Lingiari But this is the story of something much more How power and privilege can not move a people Who know where they stand and stand in the law
From little things big things grow From little things big things grow
A Handful of Sand by
Fifty years ago, a group of striking Aboriginal stockmen in the remote Northern Territory of Australia heralded a revolution in the cattle industry and a massive shift in Aboriginal affairs. A Handful of Sand tells the story behind the Gurindji peoples famous Wave Hill Walk-off in 1966, and questions the meaning of the return of their land by Gough Whitlam in 1975. Sensitively and perceptively written, A Handful of Sand reveals the path Vincent Lingiari and other Gurindji elders took to achieve their land rights victory, and how their real struggles began, rather than ended, with Whitlam's handback. Not since Frank Hardy's The Unlucky Australians (1968) have the experiences of the Gurindji Walk-off leaders and their children been related with such insight and empathy. A Handful of Sand is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the complex nature of the challenges confronting both 'white' Australian policy makers and remote Aboriginal leaders.
Vincent Lingiari, addressing the media after Prime Minister Gough Whitlam officially returns Aboriginal land at Wattle Creek
In August 1966, Vincent Lingiari led a group of Aboriginal pastoral workers and their families in a walk-off from Wave Hill Station. The strike protested the poor conditions Aboriginal workers had experienced on the station for more than 40 years.
On 23 August 1966, 200 Gurindji stockmen, domestic workers and their families initiated strike action at Wave Hill station in the Northern Territory.
The Ongoing Legacy of the Wave Hill Walk-Off
The Wave Hill Walk-Off inspired national change in the form of equal wages for Aboriginal workers, as well as a new land rights act.
The Legacy of the Wave Hill Walk-Off
Also known as the Gurindji strike, the walk-off happened at Wave Hill, a cattle station in Kalkarindji in the Northern Territory. Stretching out for almost a decade, the strike created a legacy that continues to this day.
National Heritage Places - Wave Hill Walk-Off Route
The Wave Hill Walk-Off Route in the Northern Territory is important as the location of actions taken by Aboriginal pastoral workers who walked off Wave Hill Station on 22 August 1966. This action was initially characterised as a strike and efforts were made to resolve the matter as an industrial issue. The Gurindji action developed as a wholesale rejection of the governmental and industrial framework applying to Aboriginal pastoral populations and included a demand for the return of traditional lands.
