Overt Racism In Australia

Racism exists at all levels of Australian society but Australians are in denial. It is entrenched in our institutions. The life expectancy of an Aboriginal is still more than a decade less than that of any other Australians. Many Australians believe that racism is no longer an issue in Australia. As Kevin Rudd famously stated in 2010, “I do not believe that racism is at work in Australia.” Is Australia still a racist nation, or is it hidden behind its friendly mask of a multicultural mentality? Sociologist Max Millis investigates.

The concept of being a ‘nation of immigrants’ is at the center of Australian identity.

Immigration remains a popular political but also ethical topic. For one, we like to consider ourselves progressive and moving towards a more multicultural world, yet we continue to cherry-pick immigrants with the ‘right’ qualifications and skills and there is still talk of foreign born people taking Australian jobs and being detrimental to the economy. The Syrian refugee crisis exposes further moral and ethical issues linking to the play as even though Australia has granted 12,000 humanitarian places since March 2017, we have done little to help the 5.1 million refugees escaping the civil war and much controversy and division remains over the topic.

Reports from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2003a, 2003b, as cited in Ashman & Elkins, 2009, p. 7) show 25% of the Australian population is currently made up of migrants from around 200 countries. This fact demonstrates Australia, on the whole, has a tolerant and inclusive society. A society can be identified as a collection of people who live together in a relatively ordered community (Ashman & Elkins, 2009, p. 7). It could be said, Australia has one of the most inclusive societies on the planet; however, this was not always the case.

We all know Australia is an amazing place where approximately everyone is laid back ( to some degree , it has a worthy parliamentary system as you do not need royal blood to be a leader, and you get paid considerably more compared to other countries. Although this continent is unfortunately not perfect as, in Australia there are two main types of racism. Aboriginal racism and multicultural racism. Racism is a terrible force as it has destroyed lives with verbal and physical abuse because they are of a different race. So we must change our ways. Examples of the soul crushing creature known formally as Racism are shown in the story "Tri" by Francs Echin and "Fifties Australia" by Phillip Knightley.

This article gives the reader an inequitable view of Indigenous Australians, defending Tony Abbot’s point of view and the audience is encouraged to agree with mainstream media in regards to whether or not Tony Abbott is racist. Article B from the Koori Mail condemns Tony Abbott’s viewpoint as not only racist but he is insulting the very culture that he is representing. Article B states that Tony Abbott does not understand Indigenous culture and how important land is to them “Connection to country is everything to Aboriginal people – defines Aboriginal people and sustains us in a cultural and spiritual sense and can play a vital role in building economic independence, self-determination and healing” (Greg Cromelin, Article B). With Article B the audience is encouraged to get angry at Tony Abbott’s comments and make him out to be racist.

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

Human rights are the rights of humans, regardless of nationality, gender, race, or religion. We should all have this in common as we are all part of humanity. However, Indigenous people did not always have these rights (Ag.gov.au, 2015). Aside from basic human rights, Indigenous people also have their own rights specific to their culture. Before 1967, Indigenous people had different rights in different states and the Australian federal government did not have any jurisdiction over Aboriginal affairs until Australia’s constitution was amended for this purpose in 1967 (Moadoph.gov.au, 2015). Between 1900 and the present time, there have been significant changes to the rights of Indigenous Australians. The effects of the European Settlement on the Indigenous people of Australia have been devastating. When white people began arriving in Australia, the Aboriginal people believed them to be ghosts of ancestor spirits. However, once they realised the settlers were invading their land, the Aborigines became, understandably, hostile (Slater & Parish, 1999, pp.8-11). In 1788, the total Indigenous population was believed to be between 750,000 and one million. By 1888, the Indigenous population was reduced to around 80,000 Australia wide (Korff, 2014). The three main reasons for this dramatic decline were the introduction of new diseases, violent conflicts with the colonisers, and settlers acquiring Indigenous land (Digital, 2015). In 1848, the Board of National Education stated that it

Racism is happening in contemporary Australia context, it is the culprit for overall poor health in Australian Indigenous communities. It destroy the Indigenous sense of identity that is crucial for the health and the wellbeing of a person. The key to solve the issue is to become culture inclusive and having holistic understanding of racism and Indigenous culture.

The diminished treatment of this minority group is one example of many. Noel Pearson, renowned and celebrated Aboriginal justice activist and lawyer, was exceedingly critical of Brandis’ laws. In his publication through The Sydney Morning Herald, Pearson acknowledged the unmistakeable fact that “Racial Discrimination emboldened bigots” in the past. Being a stakeholder representative for Indigenous minorities in Australia, Pearson was disturbed over the suggested reforms, believing it “disempowers” and “sets back the cause of reconciliation and closing the gap” in Indigenous communities (The Sydney Morning Herald, 2014). This was reinforced by Reconciliation Australia activist Tom Calma who declared that racial vilification should have no place in Australian society and concurs to Australia’s previous “legacy of historical discriminatory policies” (NACCHO, 2014). A society which idolises the singling out of minorities will erode community standards and inevitably lead to more abusive

Thus, the creation of the One Nation Party in 1997 clearly demonstrated the continual existence of a White Australia notion. It would seem that Hanson has always had a negative stance toward immigration, especially against ‘Asians’. This is evident in her maiden speech whereby she said “we are in danger of being swamped by Asians … They have their own culture and religion, form ghettos and do not assimilate … I should have the right to have a say in who comes into my country. Hanson also believed her views to be that of a typical Australians.” (Jupp 2002, p.130) This gross generalisation of Asians by Hanson along with One Nation winning a surprising amount of seats in parliament, only further reinforces the notion of White Australia’s continual existence in modern day Australian society. The year

Pedersen’s article is quite confrontational outlining the major issues that Australian individuals portray today, through their beliefs and thoughts about asylum seekers and Indigenous Australians. The sample group taken in Perth, is used as a representation of the wider population of Australia, with majority of Australians revealing a strong negative view against both groups. “It was found that people are becoming increasingly hostile” (Pedersen, A. Clarke, S. Dudgeon, P & Griffiths, B 2005) and are becoming ignorant and unsympathetic about the current situations that the two groups face today. This is mainly due to the general aspect of racism, being misinformed and uneducated about the events that these cultures have faced or are still dealing

The ideal goal and desire which Australia values within its diverse hybrid society is that Australia is a “lucky country”, priding itself of “mateship” and “equal opportunity” which establishes Australia’s nation identity. However with conflict and discrimination against groups such as Muslim Women and

Race and ethnicity are concepts that are constantly associated with the many hateful crimes and events occurring all around us in our daily lives. The race of an individual is an extremely convoluted subject matter in the social world. Discrimination against specific groups of people remains till this day one of the most severe issues that we stumble on, leaving many of us in shock, and consternation. Racism against a certain ethnic group often arises from embedded false assumptions that is associated with the group and their cultural behaviors. There are various different ways in which racism takes form; racism directed towards individuals with Jewish origins is often referred to as anti-Semitism, while racism that is directed towards Muslims is known as Islamophobia. Racism is embodied in various ways, allowing one group to have full authority, holding more political, social, and economic power. Discrimination and racism has a major effect on the victims, the victim’s family, as well as the community around them. Considering that racism is an immensely broad subject, this paper will focus on discrimination in that aboriginal people encounter everyday. Using Max Weber’s classification of inequality, aboriginals hold an extremely low position in class as well as status, as they acquire low or nearly no social prestige or life chances. Firstly, this paper will explore the reality behind first nations in the working force, as well as its affects on on the individual. Secondly,

During the early stages of settlement in Australia there was competition for land causing conflict between the Indigenous Australians and the new European settlers, this is what stared the discrimination against the Aboriginals. Throughout the years Europeans have distanced themselves from the Indigenous which meant discrimination within laws and policies. Over the course of Australia’s settlement three different policies arose, the Policy of Protection, the Policy of Assimilation and the current Policy of Integration. Majority of these policies prevented Indigenous Australians from having human rights, all because of the colour of their skin.