Meaning
"Beds Are Burning" is a political song about giving native Australian lands back to the Pintupi, who were among the very last people to come in from the desert. These 'last contact' people began moving from the Gibson Desert to settlements and missions in the 1930s. More were forcibly moved during the 1950s and 1960s to the Papunya settlement. In 1981 they left to return to their own country and established the Kintore community which is nestled in the picturesque Kintore Ranges, surrounded by Mulga and Spinifex country. It is a community with a population of about 400. Kintore and the town of Yuendumu are mentioned by name in the lyrics, as are vehicles produced by Holden. It's believed by some that the line, "How can we sleep while our beds are burning?", may also be a reference to singer Peter Garrett's mother's death in a house fire years earlier.
Read more about this topic: Beds Are Burning
Famous quotes containing the word meaning:
“The fact that life has no meaning is a reason to live—moreover, the only one.”
—E.M. Cioran (b. 1911)
“Let us think this thought in its most terrible form: existence as it is, without meaning or aim, and yet recurring inevitably, without a finale in nothingness—”eternal recurrence.””
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“Skill sheets, workbooks, basal reader, flash cards are not enough. To convey meaning you need someone sharing the meaning and flavor of real stories with the student.”
—Jim Trelease (20th century)