Muckaty is situated on Warlmanpa country, 120 km north of Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory. Traditional Owners call the area "Manuwangku". Nomination of their traditional land as a domestic nuclear waste dump site in 2007, coupled with proposals for Australia to "lease" uranium and take back radioactive waste from overseas nuclear power operations, have generated justifiable fear and concern amongst the Aboriginal communities in and around Muckaty (Manuwangku). They have responded to the nomination with ongoing protests to defend their right to live in a clean and safe environment, free of hazardous waste. The project "Manuwangku: under the nuclear cloud" is focused on this community under threat. Living with them and experiencing their socio-cultural life and activism, I attempted to document the spirit, connection to land and the collective voice of this community as they try to resist institutionalised racism manifesting in this instance in a move to convert their traditional lands to a dumping ground for nuclear waste.
