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Face the facts:CULTURAL DIVERSITY • 2014
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Face the Facts: Cultural diversity • 2014
ISBN 978-1-921449-67-3
Design and layout Dancingirl DesignsInfographic Design Firefly InteractiveContent James Iliffe, Black and White Media Australia
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Face the Facts: Cultural diversity • 2014 • 1
www.humanrights.gov.au/face-facts
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Cultural diversity• OneintenAustralians(1.5millionofthenation’sadultpopulation)believethatsomeracesareinferiororsuperiortoothers.7
• Around20percentofAustralianshaveexperiencedrace-hatetalk;811percenthaveexperiencedrace-basedsocialexclusion;9sixpercentreportedphysicalattacksbasedontheirraceand/ortraditionaldress;and19percentreporteddiscriminationbecauseoftheirskincolour,ethnicoriginorreligion.10
• Ofthe500complaintslodgedundertheRacialDiscriminationActin2012-2013, 192relatedtoincidentsofracialhatred.Thiswasa59percentincreaseoverthepreviousyear,withalargeproportionofthecomplaints(41percent)involvingmaterialontheInternet.11
• PeoplebornincountrieswhereEnglishisnotthemainspokenlanguagearethreetimesaslikelytoexperiencediscriminationintheworkplace,12twiceaslikelytoexperiencediscriminationineducation13andaroundfourtimesaslikelytoexperiencediscriminationinpolicingandhousing.14
• Aroundoneinthree(35percent)recentmigrantssaidtheyfacedhurdlestofindingtheirfirstjobduetoalackofAustralianworkexperienceorreferences(64 percent),languagedifficulties(33percent),alackoflocalcontactsornetworks(23percent)ordifficultieshavingtheirskillsorqualificationsrecognised(15percent).15
Australiaisavibrant,multiculturalcountry.Wearehometotheworld’soldestcontinuouscultures,aswellasAustralianswhoidentifywithmorethan270ancestries.Since1945,almostsevenmillionpeoplehavemigratedtoAustralia.
Thisrich,culturaldiversityisoneofourgreateststrengths.It iscentraltoournationalidentity.
In1975,theRacialDiscriminationActcameintoforce,makingdiscriminationindifferentpartsofpubliclifeagainstthelaw.TheAct,whichwasAustralia’sfirstfederalanti-discriminationlaw,continuestosendastrongmessageaboutourcommoncommitmenttoracialequalityandtheimportanceofafairgoforall.
In1995,theActwasextendedtomakepublicactsofracialhatredagainstthelaw.
Despitethislegalprotection,toomanypeopleinAustraliacontinuetoexperienceprejudiceandunfairtreatmentbecauseofhowtheylookorwheretheycomefrom.
About• OneinfourofAustralia’s22millionpeoplewerebornoverseas;46percentwerebornoverseasorhaveaparentwhowasbornoverseas;andnearly20percentofAustraliansspeakalanguageotherthanEnglishathome.1
• In2012-2013,overseasmigrationrepresented60percentofAustralia’spopulationgrowthintheyear.2
• PeoplebornintheUnitedKingdomcontinuetobethelargestgroupofoverseas-bornresidents(5.3percent),followedbyNewZealand(2.6percent),China(1.8percent),India(1.6percent)andVietnam(0.9percent).3In2012-13,123,438peoplefrommorethan190countrieswereapprovedtobecomeAustraliancitizens.4
• MigrantsmakeanenormouscontributiontoAustralia’seconomyandprovideanestimatedfiscalbenefitofover10billiondollarsintheirfirsttenyearsofsettlement.5In2010-11,internationaleducationcontributed$16.3billiontotheAustralianeconomy.6
• Barrierstoracialequality
Face the Facts: Cultural diversity • 2014 • 3
Positive developments• MostnewmigrantssaytheyfeelastrongsenseofbelongingtoAustraliaandthatthisfeelingdeepensovertime.16
• MostAustralians(86percent)supportactiontotackleracisminAustralia.17
• Sincebeinglaunchedin2012,over200organisations–fromthebusiness,sports,education,localgovernmentandcommunitysectors–havesignedonassupportersofthenationalanti-racismcampaign,Racism. It Stops with Me.
Did you know?• ThevastmajorityofAustralians(84percent)believethatmulticulturalismhasbeengoodforAustralia.18
Find out more• AustralianHumanRightsCommission;NationalAnti-RacismStrategy2012-2015(2012)
• AustralianHumanRightsCommission;Racism.It StopswithMe(2012-)
• DepartmentofImmigrationandBorderProtection;The People of Australia – Australia’s Multicultural Policy (2011)
• AustralianBureauofStatistics,Reflecting a Nation: Stories from the 2011 Census (2012-2013)
• UniversityofWesternSydney,Challenging Racism: The Anti-Racism Research Project(2008)
Our roleTheCommissionhelpspeopleresolvecomplaintsofdiscriminationundertheRacialDiscriminationAct.TheActprotectspeopleacrossAustraliafromunfairtreatmentonthebasisoftheirrace,colour,descent,ornationalorethnicorigin.Italsomakesracialvilificationagainstthelaw.
TheRaceDiscriminationCommissionerundertakesawiderangeofactivitiestoaddressracismandracialdiscrimination,whichincludesimplementingtheNationalAnti-RacismStrategyandcoordinatingthenationalanti-racismcampaign, Racism.ItStopswithMe.
TheCommissioneralsoundertakesresearchprojectsandprovidespolicyadviceonissuesaffectingdifferentgroupsinthecommunity.
Findoutmoreaboutourworkinthisarea.
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1 AustralianBureauofStatistics,4102.0-Australian Social Trends(April 2013).
2 AustralianBureauofStatistics,3101.0-Australian Demographic Statistics, September 2013(March2014).
3 AustralianBureauofStatistics,3412.0-Migration, Australia, 2011-12 and 2012-13(December2013).
4 DepartmentofImmigrationandBorderProtection:Facts and Statistics(2013)
5 DepartmentofImmigrationandCitizenship,Immigration update 2010–2011(2011),p109.
6 AustralianEducationInternational,Export Income to Australia from Education Services in 2010–11(November2011).
7 UniversityofWesternSydney,Challenging Racism: The Anti-Racism Research Project(2008).
8 UniversityofWesternSydney,above.9 UniversityofWesternSydney,note7.10 ScanlonFoundation,Mapping Social Cohesion: The Scanlon Foundation
Survey 2013(2013),p2.
11 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,Annual Report 2012-2013(2013).12 VictorianHealthPromotionFoundation(VicHealth),More than tolerance:
Embracing diversity for health: Discrimination affecting migrant and refugee communities in Victoria, its health consequences, community attitudes and solutions(2007).
13 VicHealth,above.14 VicHealth,note12.15 AustralianBureauofStatistics,6250.0-Characteristics of Recent
Migrants, Australia, November 2010(May2011).16 TheIpsos McKay Report: SBS Immigration Nation(2011)foundthat
60 percentoffirst-generationmigrantsfeltastrongsenseofbelongingtoAustralia,whichroseto80percentbythesecondgeneration,inlinewiththenationalaverage.
17 UniversityofWesternSydney,note7.18 ScanlonFoundation,note10.
Endnotes
Face the Facts: Cultural diversity • 2014 • 5
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