Australia Federal Election 2013 Campaign Proposal

For many years refugees have been demonized by the country through the spread of fear and misconception. Furthermore, the disgusting treatment of refugees in the detention camps by the Australian Government has been roundly criticised by the international community.

The resettlement of refugees in Australia is a controversial topic; many people believe that they come here to commit crime, change our culture and steal our jobs. ‘The Happiest Refugee’ has enhanced my belief that refugees should be allowed to live in Australia. I believe that refugees are here to escape war and persecution; they are not criminals, nor do they want to change our culture or steal our jobs. Refugees are generally grateful for their new lives in Australia and they embrace our culture. ‘The Happiest Refugee’ is a source of evidence that supports this.

In a world surrounded by media, people are reliant on truthful and honest information to form accurate conceptions of current events and issues. Australia is a self-proclaimed multicultural country who aims to achieve equality and equity. However, through the analysis of the comparative text between, Stan Grant’s ‘The Australian Dream’ and Pauline Hanson’s, “Maiden Speech” it is clear that the truth is juxtaposed with the reality of the present Australia, who is still a country with racism and inequality. Despite two people stating the arguing issue, there are different perceptions of truth of who is the most vulnerable. In which Grant places great significance on the racism rooted in the Australian Dream and Hanson’s stance for non-Indigenous people inequality.

Stan Grant’s speech ‘Racism and the Australian Dream’ (2015) effectively reminds the Australian population of the racism and harsh inequalities indigenous Australians have faced in the past and still face today. In reminding us of this reality, Grant engages us to discover issues of civic participation in Aboriginal people and in doing so perpetuates a need for social change. More?

Unfortunately, the narrative concerning refugees and asylum seekers as presented in the media is an overall negative one. Most of the fear present in Australian society is aggravated by media coverage. When discussing the representation of refugees it is important to take into consideration the language that is used and often associated with refugees. In most discussions presented in the national news, refugees are represented as a threat to

The social media campaigns of the Canadian Federal Political Parties (Liberal, Conservative, and NDP) have been compared to one another in an attempt to understand their choices made to persuade audiences to take part in actively addressing and supporting their campaigns. Concepts discussed throughout this course have been applied to the three varying campaigns, including attention, earned media, branding, spreadability, intended audience, tone, navigation, and participation. These aspects have been prominent in all three social media campaigns and thus, have been chosen for this case analysis.

“The thing to remember is that we are all the same inside,” said a young man he spoke to. This is a very important statement because it could actually be the key to preventing further racism. If all Australians could believe this way, we would live in a more peaceful society. Many would argue that Australia, with its large population of overseas born people is a non racist nation. We have suburbs in Sydney which delight all cultures and signify multiculturalism at its best. The Italian’s in Leichardt, Lebanese in Auburn/Bankstown, and Chinese in Cabramatta and Chinatown in the city. Governments and local councils might encourage festivals and awareness through entertainment and local media e.g. Chinese New Year festivals. This is a display which shows that Australian’s are indeed quite accepting of other races. Governing policies such as the Commonwealth Racial Discrimination Act (1975) aim to ensure that “everyone is treated equally, regardless of their race, colour, descent or nationality or ethnic origin”. According to the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship we are processing applications for asylum seekers from war torn countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan. The Asylum Seeker Assistance Program is a scheme that has been set up by the government to assist these people with income support, and advice as they wait to gain refugee status. This

This spectacle is related to the ideals of torture. They are tortured and punished based on exclusions and exception. The refugees held in detention centres form the exception. They are the Other which no one wishes to become and are a danger to society. Those tortured are viewed as deserving because they are seen as a threat. The power to make decisions about who can and cannot enter Australia lies within the (Government) Sovereignty (Georgatos, 2017). The sovereign

I'm an ambassador for amnesty international, campaigning for refugees rights. Amnesty works to protect the safety of millions of refugees who are forced to flee their homes to escape war, genocide and torture. The main debate of this issue is of national security vs human rights. Every Australian has their stance on this and for those that oppose it, often believe that “we are letting in terrorists”. This generalisation, based off ill-legitimate fear, is anything but true. In fact, it is just racist. According to the the Australian Parliamentary Library, between 70-100% of people who arrived by boat have been found to be refugees. This means, these individuals have been forced to leave their

The documentary, “Go Back to Where You Came From” plunges six Australians participants into the intense fear and desperate situations that forces them to confront their attitudes towards the refugee seeking experience. In such a powerful social experiment, using the “Survivor” and “Big Brother” modes of reality television, powerful emotions erupt. The documentary mixes “real life” with constructed situations to produce emotional breaking points around an audience’s attitudes, especially in the heartfelt interactions with refugee families thus privileging immigrants. An audience experience the “borderline” minds’ of the participants and the unstable world of refugees for themselves. They get caught up in the turbulent emotions and crises that are inflicted by the documentary through the clever use of evidence, rhetorical questions, inclusive language and sensationalism. The author rebuts the prevailing misrepresentation of immigrants as freeloaders by providing living testimonies of so called once, “boat people” now living in Australia who are not only grateful but are willing to relinquish all they have for Australia’s sake because of the act of benevolence Australia has showed to them and their families. This is evident in the following quotes of Andrew, “They came here to be more effective in the society…. Amar without a doubt is the kind of refugee we want” and in Amar’s quotes, “If they want to go fight, to protect Australia, I will go……Australia gives us a lot, so easy

The piece written by Michael Gordon in The Age on October 19 2011, argues that ten years after the Australian federal election that sparked the asylum seeker controversy, asylum seekers are still being demonised and alienated by both of Australia’s major political parties. Gordon writes in an assertive, controlled and a somewhat concerned tone throughout the article with his target audience aimed at ‘The Age’ readers who have considerable knowledge and understanding of the ongoing debate. Current parliament members from both federal parties could also be his target audience as Gordon provides a solution to the crisis, in that the failure of the Malaysia

Following Australian Immigration Minister Peter Dutton’s comments on the ‘danger’ of ‘uneducated and illiterate’ refugees and immigrants being accepted into Australia, debate resurfaced regarding the issue of asylum seekers and immigrants in general, and whether refugees deserved to be resettled in Australia. In an opinion piece for The Age newspaper, Kon Karapanagiotidis argues that Peter Dutton’s claims are false and that on the contrary, refugees and immigrants have much to contribute to Australian society. His arguments are fashioned in a heavily emotive tone, and overall the piece is compelling and compassionate while also heatedly opposing Dutton’s views.

Good morning delegates of the youth parliament and observing members. Today I stand before you to discuss an issue that continues to evoke high emotions and create deep divisions within Australian society. I refer to the matter of refugees and Australia's immigration policy. Not since the second world war has the world faced such an upheaval with so many people displaced. In 2015 there were 65.3 million people forcibly displaced from their homes because of conflict and persecution. Developing countries hold 84% of refugees while wealthier countries like Australia prioritise the need to reduce asylum seekers within their borders. The current policy contravenes the proper treatment of refugees and asylum seekers; because regardless of their mode of entry, once here Australia has a duty to provide protection.

Asylum seekers in Australia always been the focal point of negative political concern for a long time. To stop asylum seekers continue arriving in Australia by boat, Australia enforces the policy of obligatory detention of asylum seekers, unauthorised asylum seekers arriving by boat will be sent to Papua New Guinea camp where operated by the Australian government (‘Asylum seekers: Australia’s shame’ 2017). However, this policy was reported as disgraceful because of the deficient living condition, indefinite and arbitrary of detention and lack of health care (United Nations 2017). Cohen (2011 p. 242) stated that moral panic could be more likely to develop in anything associated with 'immigration, migrants, multicultural absorption, refugees, border controls and asylum seekers’. Is Australia's response to asylum seekers an example of moral panic? By analysing the five criteria from the moral panic theory by looking at the Australian public reaction to asylum seekers with references support, it could be found that the reaction to asylum seekers in Australia is an example of moral panic.

In the writing by Briggs (Young People and Political Participation: Teen Players) she notes that “social media are a critical new space for political discourse and engagement, which political institutions cannot afford to neglect” as the younger audiences use social media, and the people they follow as a guide it seemed vital that modern day politics has to infiltrate social media formats. This can be utilised by politicians and their agenda to widen the scope of their message. In the Praeger Handbook of Political Campaigning in the United States, Benoit investigates how successful an organised strategy using new media to win an election can be for political candidates. He states that “the innovative use of new media contributed to President Barack Obama's presidential campaign win in 2008” (Benoit, 2016). Obama's presidential campaign was one of the first to set the standard for political strategy online. The literature talks about the expansion of the internet and how that has provided a suitable platform for political agendas to grow exponentially. With the focus of the research project highlighting the specific use of social media it is important to reflect on the initial stages of online political campaigning, and to understand how Trump has cultivated this style of political