‘We hope that the people of Australia will wait. Not so much waiting for us – but waiting with us as we find our way in the world.

My people are used to the struggle and the long waiting. We still wait for the white people to understand us better. We ourselves had to spend many years hearing about the white man’s ways. Some of the learning was forced, but in many cases people tried hard over a long time to learn new ways.

We have learned to speak the white man’s language. We have listened to what he has to say. This learning and listening should go both ways. We would like people in Australia to take time to listen to us. We are hoping people will come closer. We keep on longing for the things we have always longed for – respect and understanding’.

– Miriam-Rose Ungunmerr, ‘Dadirri – The Spring Within’, in Dadirri: The Spring Within: The Spiritual Art of the Aboriginal People from Australia’s Daly River Region, by Eileen Farrelly (Darwin: Terry Knight, 2003), ix.