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Fifty years ago today a group of four Aboriginal men planted a beach umbrella on the lawns out the front of Parliament House, as part of a protest over land rights.That action marked the beginning of the longest ever Indigenous land rights protest in history: the Aboriginal Tent Embassy. Today, Kamilaroi Uralarai woman Frances Peters-Little on why land rights is fundamental to the campaign for Indigenous justice. Guest: Filmmaker, historian, author and musician, Dr Frances Peters-Little.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Right now most of Australia is living without restrictions, lockdowns or border closures.But with tens of thousands of people, including essential workers, being forced into isolation everyday our economy is still under intense pressure from the pandemic.Today, national correspondent for The Saturday Paper Mike Seccombe on how the rampant spread of Omicron has led to a shadow lockdown, and why for many businesses and families, it’s the worst lockdown yet.Guest: National correspondent for The Saturday Paper, Mike Seccombe.Background reading: Tracing the 'nightmare' reality of the shadow lockdown in The Saturday Paper.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After nearly two years of lockdowns and border closures there was hope that this summer things might be different in Australia. But then, Omicron hit. Now we’re entering year three of the Covid-19 pandemic. Case numbers are higher than ever, hospitals are being pushed to their limit and rapid tests are extremely difficult to find.So how did we get here?Today, senior reporter for The Saturday Paper Rick Morton on how Covid-19 caught up with Australia this summer, and what the federal government could have done to better prepare for this moment. Guest: Senior reporter for The Saturday Paper, Rick Morton.Stay in touch with us on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Author and activist Bri Lee regularly runs workshops on consent and sex in schools.She writes about those workshops in the context of a growing national conversation about sexual harassment and assault.Today, Bri reads her article from The Monthly, 'Ill-informed consent'. Guest: Contributor to The Monthly Bri Lee.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Sarah Krasnostein, the best-selling author of ‘The Trauma Cleaner’, reads her essay from The Monthly. It’s called ‘The most hated man’ and it explores the sentencing of Richard Pusey, who was convicted of outraging public decency after he filmed the horrific aftermath of a car crash that killed four police officers.Guest: Writer for The Saturday Paper Sarah Krasnostein.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s another special bonus summer episode of The Culture! On this episode of The Culture, author and The Saturday Paper’s TV critic Sarah Krasnostein breaks down the best TV shows of 2021 - from drama, to comedy, to the best of Australian television.Guest: Sarah Krasnostein. TV critic for The Saturday Paper.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Scott Ludlam, ICAN ambassador and former Australian Greens Senator, reads his cover essay from the latest issue of The Monthly.It’s called ‘The Endgame’. It explores the trial of Julian Assange, and the powers fighting to extradite him, while his condition deteriorates in a UK prison.Guest: Scott Ludlam, ICAN ambassador and former Australian Greens Senator.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this special bonus summer episode of The Culture, we’re talking the best of films in 2021. It was a great year for movies, and there’s plenty of stuff to catch up on if you didn’t have the time to hit the cinema as much as you would have liked.Joining host Osman Faruqi is film critic and the co-host of the Total Reboot podcast, Alexei Toliopoulos. Guest: Alexei Toliopoulos, film critic and co-host of podcast Total Reboot.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Twenty five years ago Paul Kelly, one of Australia’s greatest songwriters, released ‘How To Make Gravy’, a song that has since become a staple at many family Christmas gatherings.‘How to Make Gravy’ is full of anecdotes and snapshots about summer in Australia: the hot weather, Christmas roasts, dancing, and of course, family reunions. It’s a song that perfectly encapsulates what this time of year is supposed to be about.Paul Kelly joined The Culture to talk about ‘How To Make Gravy’, the inspiration behind the song, how much it mirrors Paul’s own family Christmases, and why it seems to become more and more popular every year. Guest: Paul KellySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Capitol riots, the Delta strain, sexual assault allegations rocking Parliament, the war in Gaza, the Olympics, COP26 and humanity’s last chance, the world’s longest lockdown, freedom days, and now Omicron and the start of a federal election campaign.Today, we look back at the news events that defined 2021 - in sound.Original music and composition in this episode by Alex Gow. Stay in touch with us on Twitter and Instagram. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.