In this highly anticipated new issue, we encounter brilliant examples of what writing can do in a hypernormal time – whether that's Benjamin Gready on the absurdity of fieldwork on land under active occupation or Zahid Gamieldien's short story about a dancing rat who finds itself enmeshed in systems too shadowy to be true. But, as with the emotional cycles of resistance, hope and snark are features too. Dan Hogan considers the lawn as a class obsession, and π.ο. asks a question: why people hate poetry? We also read about a rakhasa family who passes on wisdom to their young kin, a story by Shefali Mathew. And you’ll find new poetry by Eli McLean, Fiona Hile and Sol Chan, among others, as well as a comic by Safdar Ahmed, plus heaps more. Co-editors Evelyn Araluen and Jonathan Dunk write in the editorial, "Writing always matters, but it matters most directly in the face of this kind of thuggish assault on language, our first and last commons. We can’t let the bastards have it.”
Galarrawy Yunupingu, a member of Gumatj clan of the Yolngu people, entered the struggle for land rights in the early 1960s. Yunupingu became a very prominent leader and strong voice on behalf of Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory and Australia. He was Chairman of the Northern Land Council from 1977–2004 and in 2001 was elected as co-chair of the Aboriginal Development Consultative Forum in Darwin. His honours include Australian of the Year (1978), the Order of Australia (1985), and an honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) from the University of Melbourne.
