More than 500 people have gathered in Adelaide to rally against the closure of indigenous communities.
Protesters waved Aboriginal flags and brandished pinatas bearing the faces of Prime Minister Tony Abbott and West Australian Premier Colin Barnett on the steps of SA's Parliament House on Thursday.
Holding signs reading "Homelands not heartlands" and "Tony Abbott close your gap", the crowd applauded speeches by South Australian Aboriginal elders, who urged protesters to fight the closures.
The prime minister has backed plans by WA's Liberal government to close up to 150 remote communities, questioning whether taxpayers should be subsidising essential services.
SA has refused to sign up to a federal deal to hand over basic services for indigenous communities to the states and local councils.
Premier Jay Weatherill said on Thursday he hoped Mr Abbott would back down on cuts to municipal funding in the May federal budget.
"We're going to continue to agitate our grievance with the federal government," he told reporters.
"It might be one of those barnacles the prime minister decides to scrape off."
Greens MLC Tammy Franks said the prime minister's description of living in a remote community as a "lifestyle choice" showed a lack of understanding.
"The gap is getting wider to our shame," she said.
"If you force people off their land and from their connection with country, their health outcomes and their mental health outcomes will be worse."
