Geoffrey Blainey hails
The Burden of Culture

Geoffrey Blainey, Australia’s foremost historian, writes in praise of Gary Johns’ Burden of Culture, published by Quadrant books:

“Gary Johns is a brave and observant writer on Aboriginal cultures, politics, and contrasting ways of life. Unlike many experts, he knows what cannot be and what must be reformed. His Burden of Culture is an impressive book and a gold mine of surprising information: it is already affecting the nation’s debate on Indigenous affairs.”

After the failure of the Voice referendum and the patronising conceit of its promoters that more jobs for the indigenous elite would remedy the despair of remote communities, Burden of Culture is the antidote to magical thinking. As Johns writes,

The Aboriginal industry fails to address the needs of the 20 per cent minority of their population who still live in despair. Those who remain in remote and rural Australia are being asked to build a new Jerusalem on poor lands with ancient cultural hab­its. This captive minority needs to reach out, literally, but the politics of their leaders keeps them locked where they are.

Click here to order your copy of The Burden of Culture