A Blanket A Year

In this book, originally published in 1973, the authors show just how wide-ranging and deep-rooted are the disadvantages of the Australian Aboriginal population. The title refers to an Aboriginal commentary on all they received for their land. Shockingly, when this book was written, there was a severe lack of meaningful information regarding the Aborigine population: their number, employment or educational attainment. The authors argue powerfully in this book that until this extraordinary ignorance was rectified, there could be no basis for planning vital improvements. The authors stressed the need for public authorities to gather information on Aboriginal health, housing, employment and education, as without this no attempt to overcome the gross inequalities could succeed. A valuable source of historical data, this book remains important reading for politicians, social workers, sociologists and anthropologists.