'They live in the shadows of the white man's world, the Pitjantjatjara and Yankjatjara people of the Western Desert. We took their hunting grounds, their women and children; now - through an outrageous interpretation of official policy - we seek to embalm a living culture for commercial gain. The people are reassured that 'Government' is helping them 'to protect their Law and sacred sites' - but no one has thought to ask 'For whom?'. Cave Hill in South Australia is about to join Ayers Rock and a string of desecrated sites over which tourists heedlessly tramp. Only public protest can prevent further outrages.
'Killing Me Softly is the cry of the spiritually dispossessed. It says for the Desert People what Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee said for the American Indian. It also provides a lucid description of Aboriginal philosophy - and a devastating account of the systematic destruction of a lifestyle and a spiritual heritage.
'Phyl and Noel Wallace spend several months each year with the Pitjantjatjara people as researchers for the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies, Canberra, of which they are associate members. The are the authors of Children of the Desert.' (Publication summary)
