When Nakamarra, a Warlpiri resident of Nyirrpi (NT) observed, “They getting really hard with the houses” – what did she mean? In this paper I unpack what it means when Warlpiri people describe someone as being or feeling ‘hard’ and ask how this differs to the ways ‘hardness’ resonates at the Indigenous/non-Indigenous interface of government and community service delivery. I do so by analysing an ethnographic case study of housing upgrades at Nyirrpi, and by linking recent critical insights about housing policy and provision to Warlpiri interpretations of (and resistance to) the relationship between housing and non-Indigenous governance over Warlpiri lives.

Zoom: https://bit.ly/2OEVSFr 
Meeting ID: 937 9210 4939
Passcode: 800615