Dear friend,

Did you see the email from Rosalie last week?

Rosalie is an Aboriginal elder living in a small community named Utopia 260 kms from Alice Springs. Utopia is one of more than 500 homeland communities -- traditional lands where Aboriginal people have lived for generations. But these homelands are now under threat from government policy that is starving communities like Rosalie's of funds for essential services that will effectively force people to move to larger towns.

Imagine being told that your home, the place where your family had lived for generations, would no longer have access to the essential services other Australians expect.

If you think the government should not repeat the mistakes of the past, stand with Rosalie and other Aboriginal Australians who want to remain on their homelands -- with their communities, families and way of life intact.

We know that people living on homelands have much higher life expectancies than those in larger towns. For many people, homelands are the birthplace and anchor of language, culture and identity. Homelands matter, and together we can speak with one voice to defend them.

Nearly one-third of Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory live on homelands, yet they receive just a fraction of government funding for essential services. With proper support, people can live longer, healthier lives on homelands. Add your name to claim a tile on our painting and Amnesty International's Secretary General will hand-deliver your message of support to the people of Utopia. We’ll also let the government know that you are standing with the homelands communities of the Northern Territory.

Here at Amnesty International, we stand together to defend human rights, wherever they threatened or neglected. Today, we have the opportunity to stand with our fellow Australians and send the message to the people of Utopia that they are not alone.

Thank you for taking a stand,

Sarah Marland
Indigenous Peoples' Rights campaign coordinator
Amnesty International Australia