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| June 24, 2009 | | Nine out of 10 Australians believe racial prejudice exists in their country | Australians are in two minds about multiculturalism, and a long-term survey has found that nine out of 10 Australians believe that racial prejudice exists in the country. They believe cultural diversity is good
for the country but they're worried that cultural differences will stop everyone
from getting along. An 11-year study by a collaboration of Australian universities
has found 85 per cent of Australians acknowledge racial prejudice occurs in the
nation, and one in five has been a victim of racist verbal abuse. The study found
that 6.5 per cent of the 16,000 Australians surveyed were against multiculturalism,
The Sydney Morning Herald reported. Professor Kevin Dunn, from the University
of Western Sydney 's school of social science, said the study revealed that the
majority of Australians are pro-multiculturalism but are anxious that the diversity
will not be managed well. "Over 40 per cent of those surveyed feel that cultural
differences pose a threat to societal harmony. So if you take that alongside the
87 per cent that are pro-multiculturalism, clearly you've got a third of the nation
that tolerate cultural diversity, but are concerned at the impact it will have
on society," Professor Dunn said. "The Cronulla riots and the recent attacks on
people of Indian descent are an example of this. The figures show that 85 per
cent of Australia acknowledge there is racial prejudice in the country," he added.
Dunn believes previous governments have done nothing to address the issue for
the past decade, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner
Tom Calma spending only part of his time dealing with race discrimination. "For
the last decade, the government hasn't appointed a full-time Race Discrimination
Commissioner. Take the issue of the Indian students recently. There's no way that
the commission is resourced enough to deal with their (the Indians') reports (of
violent attacks on them), and to offer support and advice," he said. The survey
also found that at least one in five Australians experience verbal abuse such
as offensive slang names for different cultural groups, or swearing and offensive
gestures, while 11 per cent feel they don't belong or are inferior. The study
is part of the "Challenging Racism Project".
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