This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Yirrkala bark petitions to the Federal Government.

For those that don't know back in 1963 the Yolngu people of east Arnhem Land sought Commenwealth recognition of rights to their traditional lands in the Gove Peninsula. Though these documents did not achieve the constitutional change they sought, it paved the way for eventual recognition of indigenous rights in commonwealth law. Future claims, most notably the Gurindji walk off of 1966, were successful in part of this claim.

However it was the Gurindji walk off that set in stone the Land Rights movement in Australia. Their success paved the way for other Land Rights claims and to a lesser extent Mabo's claim in the '90s.

So hats off to the Yolngu people, whose actions helped to forever change Australia's political and legal landscape