Quote:Why do we think Multiculturalism has failed?
Recently the team I work for decided to have a multicultural lunch. This wasn’t some corporate edict from head-office. We decided to do this because we wanted to. Our office is a microcosm of multicultural Australia. There are people from all over world; China, Japan, Algeria, France, Vietnam, Crete, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Spain, The Philippines, Canada, The United States, England, South Africa … there are even some Australian born people of Anglo-Celtic descent, like me.
The lunch was great. People brought in food from all different cultures. And the desserts were amazing too … I have to admit, I just had dessert for lunch that day. Many kinds. As I sat there having my second helping of cake, I looked around the office and saw all these people from all over the world smiling, laughing and having a great time. This, I thought to myself, is why multiculturalism works. People just getting along with each other despite our cultural differences. More to the point, people celebrating their cultural differences. Why then, I asked myself, do people always rush to judge Australians as being racist?
Don’t get me wrong. I know racism exists in Australia. Evil, nasty, deplorable racism. But these people only represent a minority of Australians. I firmly believe that the vast majority of people in Australia are like the people I work with. Accepting and curious about people from different cultures. So why don’t we celebrate this more in Australia?
Sometimes I think Australians are Australia’s worst enemy. We rush to make judgement on ourselves even when the facts don’t back up the case against ourselves. We continually look for signs of bigotry and greed and evil in the national character. Less often do we celebrate the good things in our national character. Maybe that’s why the rest of the world only views Australians as cartoon-exaggerations of who we really are. Maybe that’s why we are perceived as being beer-swilling, loud-mouthed, sport-obsessed racists instead of as the sophisticated, culture-loving, tolerant people we really are.
We should celebrate the overall success of multiculturalism in Australia and stop looking for racism in places where it doesn’t exist. Just think about it. We live in one of the most multi-cultural nations on Earth, and yet we are also one of the most peaceful and socially well-adjusted nations on Earth. So, what does that say about us as a people? I think it says good things, and that’s what I saw at our multicultural lunch.
[http://www.mamamia.com.au/news/multiculturalism-in-australia-is-a-success-story-so-why-do-we-doubt/#MIuCD6PotjdRRBbx.99]
Quote:Australia's Multicultural Success Story Continues
The Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) welcomes the release of the latest Mapping Social Cohesion report.
‘Today we see further evidence of Australian’s multicultural success story,’ commented FECCA Chair Pino Migliorino. ‘Most of us are happy to welcome immigrants to the country, and the vast majority of people living in Australia feel a strong sense of belonging here. It’s good to see that social cohesion is high and has been on the rise in the last couple of years.’
‘Whilst the overall message is positive, the report includes some indicators that concern FECCA and should also concern policy makers,’ Mr Migliorino continued. ‘For example, the feedback from third-generation Australians living in four Local Government Areas where cultural diversity is high wasn’t as positive as the national average.’
‘While we need to be careful to keep this in perspective—we are only talking about a higher minority of negative responses in four LGAs across Australia—there might be ways to address it,’ said Mr Migliorino. ‘Policy makers could think about broadening the areas of first settlement as well as non-urban settlement.’
FECCA, as the peak body representing Australians from CALD backgrounds, is also concerned that particular groups continue to be targets of discrimination and ill-will, including Australians of Indian, Vietnamese and Middle Eastern backgrounds, as well as Muslim people of a range of backgrounds. There also remains considerable ignorance about asylum seekers and their very small contribution to Australia’s overall immigration intake.
‘We know Australia is not perfect yet,’ Mr Migliorino said, ‘but the report’s indicators of social cohesion are high overall. Most of us feel a sense of satisfaction with our lives, have high political participation and think positively about social justice in Australia. Its message is clear that Australia’s multiculturalism is a success.’
‘There are plenty more conversations that need to be had, and practical steps to be taken, to improve the lives of immigrants in Australia—that’s what FECCA is here to advocate for. While most of us came here as immigrants at one point or another, this survey shows that the vast majority of us identify strongly with being Australian and that we are proud of our way of life.’
Mapping Social Cohesion 2012 is the fifth in a series of reports produced by Monash University in partnership with the Scanlon Foundation and the Australian Multicultural Foundation. The series provides a longitudinal indication of Australians’ attitudes to a range of immigration and social cohesion questions