One man.
650 kilometres.
A nation listened.
OUR STORY
It started with a walk
In 2004, Michael Long came home from yet another Aboriginal funeral and decided something had to change. First Nations lives had slipped off the national agenda, and nobody in Canberra seemed to be listening.
Michael was one of the most respected Aboriginal figures in Australian football. He had already changed the game once, taking a stand against on-field racism that led to the AFL's racial vilification code. Now he'd take a stand for his people. He'd meet Prime Minister John Howard and put First Nations issues back on the table, even if it meant walking all 650 kilometres to Canberra to do it.
So he started walking. On 21 November 2004, Michael set out on foot from his home in Melbourne, bound for Parliament House.
The history behind the Long Walk.
The movement
He didn't walk alone for long. Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people joined him from those first days on the road, some for an hour, some for a day, some ready to go all the way to Canberra.
Many are still walking. Michael and a number of the original 2004 walkers return every year, the same faces leading the way they did back then.
As Michael and the walkers passed through country Victoria, locals came out to meet them with food, encouragement and support.
What began in frustration and pain became a mission of hope. And it worked. Within days, the walk had captured national attention, and the Prime Minister agreed to meet. Michael got his meeting, and First Nations issues, from education and health to the Stolen Generations, were back on the agenda.
The walk also revealed something Michael hadn't expected. Australians from all walks of life had been looking for a way to show their support for Aboriginal people and culture. He gave them one: put one foot in front of the other.
Why we walk
That journey is the foundation of everything we do. Every year, tens of thousands of people walk together to the MCG before Dreamtime at the ‘G’, continuing what Michael started. Beyond the event, we walk it forward through education in schools, community programs, and conversations that keep First Nations voices at the centre of the national story.
The walk continues. There's a place in it for you.
THE EVOLUTION OF A MOVEMENT
The original walk
Michael Long walks 650 kilometres from Melbourne to Canberra to put First Nations lives back on the national agenda. The Prime Minister agrees to meet him.
Establishing the ritual
The first Dreamtime at the 'G brings Essendon and Richmond to the MCG. The Long Walk® opens the day, from Federation Square to the ground. It has happened every year since.
Thousands walk together
More than 15,000 people join the walk to the MCG. One man's decision has grown into one of the country's largest acts of reconciliation.
Beyond the walk
The work no longer stops at the final siren. Through Ganbu Gulin, Little Long Walks and Yarning Conferences in schools around the country, young people learn First Nations history and culture year round.
Our mission
To carry Michael's 650-kilometre walk forward, through schools, communities and events that keep First Nations voices at the centre of Australia's story. Walk with us.
