The ‘White Australia Policy’ was first put in place by the federal government in 1901. The overall aim of the policy was to limit non-white immigration, especially Asians. At the time, 98% of Australia’s population were white; Australia wanted to maintain this number, and aim to have the country mainly consist of British people. With most of the country already white, the majority of Australians supported the policy when it was first introduced; this is because the white Australians were concerned about losing their jobs to non-white workers. They believed a restrictive immigration policy was the only way to ensure a secure future. So with denying so many races the right to migrate to Australia, what legacy did the policy leave on Australia? …show more content…
It can be seen that this policy did in fact leave negative effects on Australia when you analyse how it permanently damaged Australia’s relations with neighbouring countries and the fact that there is still some form of racism in Australia today. On the other hand though, there has been some positive impacts as Australia is a much more culturally diverse country.
The legacy of the ‘White Australia Policy’ has been a negative one as it has changed the views of other countries towards Australia. The policy restricted a large amount of races from migrating to Australia; for example, when the Japanese received news on the restrictive act they were greatly offended, this was not because of the policy itself but their national pride. They believed that their civilisation was superior to other races such as the Indians, Chinese and Pacific Islanders. The Japanese government were offended by Australia as Australia grouped them with other races who in their opinion were far less advanced compared to themselves. When the ‘Pacific Island Labourers Act’ was first introduced there were many mixed reactions. The 10,000 Pacific Islanders who were living in Queensland at the time were affected by this the most. These men were recruited as indentured labourers and worked ten hours a day, six days a week on the sugarcane fields in Queensland/ New South Wales. This new act forced the Pacific Islanders out of the country. This created great frustration and …show more content…
confusion within their community, they couldn’t understand why they had to leave a place that had now become their home. The Pacific Islanders had come to Queensland at a young age and started a whole new life for themselves; with some leasing farms and others purchasing their homes in the area. Majority of them had even made families within the country and raised their children in Queensland. When hearing the news on the ‘Pacific Island Labourers Act’ many of them feared returning home as they believed they would be banished or even executed for breaking the rules of their tribe. In 1906, approximately 1,654 Pacific Islanders were granted permission to stay in Queensland, this is only 16% of the original amount of migrants; as of 2006 only 2% of Queensland’s population were Pacific Islanders. From these pieces of evidence, it is clear that Australia’s relations with other countries was damaged through their exclusion of other races within their society. The policy was not only unpopular between other countries, it was also strong form of discrimination, some of this racism is still amongst Australia today. A good example of racism within Australia, is the Cronulla Riots.
In December 2005, Cronulla Beach (located in Sydney) was the scene of multiple race riots and mob violence between White and Lebanese Australians. Phrases and slogans such as “100% Aussie Pride” and “We grew here, you flew here” were written in the sands of Australia, becoming a new source of national shame. The riot was provoked by the assault of two off-duty lifesavers, they were attacked by a group of men with Middle Eastern appearances. Australian’s were furious that people who used their free time to protect others had been abused; most wanting revenge. From the acts of one small group of men, a large majority of Australia’s population were abused both verbally and physically, this included women, men and children; every Middle Eastern person was looked at differently and no longer considered an Australian. After the assault of the lifesavers a message was sent out to hundreds of mobile phones: “This Sunday every F***ing Aussie in the shire, get down to North Cronulla to help support Leb and wog bashing day...Bring your mates down and let’s show them this is our beach and they’re never welcome back!”. The racial tensions quickly turned to mob violence when 5,000 people turned up at Cronulla Beach. The riots were greatly publicised in other countries, with Britain, Canada and Indonesia warning their people to be careful when visiting Australia. Australia was once again now seen as a racist and dangerous
country. A very interesting quote made by a participant of the riot a year later reads as: “They will probably, like, possibly out-breed us. And once they get the numbers, they can vote their members into parliament. And once their members are in parliament, they can pass laws.” This statement is a modernised version of the beliefs of the White-Australian’s back when the ‘White Australia Policy’ was first introduced, as it is fear of a non-white race taking over Australia’s population. Another example of racism in Australia’s society today is Pauline Hanson’s maiden speech. Although many people believed that the ‘White Australia Policy’ was long gone, in 1996 Pauline Hanson presented a speech addressing the abolishment of the policy. She believed that a new restrictive immigration policy (similar to the old one) should be reviewed and put back in place. Fortunately this was not done. On the other hand though, Australia has now become a lot more multicultural and racially diverse. Australia has made great efforts to succeed in becoming a multicultural society. Through the acceptance of so many other races, Australia has embraced the culture and religion of different nationalities from all over the world. Australia is a highly diverse society; since World War 2 over 7 million people migrated to Australia from over 150 different countries. Although majority of Australia’s population were born in the country, approximately 75% of Australian’s were identified to have an ancestry different from Australian, this was found through the 2011 census. 43% of people living in Australia have a minimum of one parent born overseas and 30% of the population were born overseas.
The 2014 Walkley Award winning documentary, "Cronulla Riots: the day that shocked the nation" reveals to us a whole new side of Aussie culture. No more she’ll be right, no more fair go and sadly no more fair dinkum. The doco proved to all of us (or is it just me?) that the Australian identity isn’t really what we believe it to be. After viewing this documentary
The Cronulla Riots ‘ that day that shocked the nation’ occurred on December 11, 2005 in Sydney’s South on Cronulla beach. (Cronulla Riots: The Day that Shocked the Nation, 2016) A violent, wild crowd of 5,000 ‘white’ Anglo-Celtic local Australians fuelled by alcohol, targeted men of ‘middle eastern appearance’ in areas around Cronulla beach, the local shops and the railway station, by brutally beating them. As a result of this a storm erupted between members of a dominant ethic group against a minority group. (Poynting, 2006) The after math of the riots has ultimately resulted in surf life saving authorities bringing in a more culturally inclusive environment and incorporating different ethnic groups within surf life saving guidelines. How did the riots start between white Australian and Lebanese Australians? What was the history behind it? How could surf lifesavers make the beach more culturally and racially inclusive?
During world war two Australia came close to being invaded, the Japanese in Sydney Harbor were a huge fright to many Australians. After world war two it seemed Australia needed to populate or perish. So the government made a big push to fill Australia. Many children were born due to this new idea. They were called the 'Baby boomers'. The baby boomers were being born at huge rates and inflating Australians population. The white Australia policy was pretty much abandoned as migrants flooded into Australia. White Australians still felt that they were superior but they needed these immigrants to populate Australia.
After the release of Rabbit Proof Fence, many `politically right' white Australians tried to promote that the film was based on myth and misunderstanding but in facet is not as the film itself promotes the openness of racism. Racism was not only a problem is Australia but throughout the world and is continuing to stay a problem, even in our own backyard. The racism between the white Australians and the Aborigines is quite similar to the racism shown in schools and even in parliament here in New Zealand between the Maori and Europeans, or once again between the `white' and the `black'.
In the nineteenth century, the “History wars” became the fight between the most prominent historians revolving around the deception of frontier conflict between the labor and coalition. The debate aroused from the different interpretations of the violence that took place during the European colonization and to what degree. It became a crisis in history, emerging from the dispossession of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders (ATSI) that resulted in exclusion of their traditions and culture. The ATSI were the first people of Australia that brought along a different culture, language, kinship structures and a different way of life (Face the Facts, 2012). Post European colonization was a time where the ATSI people experienced disadvantage in the land they called home. With the paramount role as future educators, it demands proficient knowledge on the Australian history and one of the most influential moments in our history started from the first European settlers.
Indigenous Australians have faced many changes to their original life style, with numerous policies being brought in. These policies had an incredible affect on how the indigenous Australians lived. The policies inflicted on the indigenous Australians varied widely and had numerous impacts. The policies of assimilation, protection and integration had mainly negative impacts on the community, causing loss of identity, language and religion. The policies of self-determination and reconciliation, had mostly positive effects to the indigenous Australian community, creating a stronger bond between black and white Australians, encouraging the concept of closing the gap between indigenous Australians and non-indigenous Australians. These policies had an incredible influence on the indigenous Australians life, changing many ways they lived. The policies changed the path of history for all Australians.
In 1788 when the European settlers “colonised” Australia, the Australian land was known as “terra nullius” which means “land belonging to no-one”. This decision set the stage for the problems and disadvantages faced by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for 216 years. The protection policy was meant to disperse tribes and force Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people off their traditional land so the “white Australian’s” could have more control. The protection policy enforced by the British colonies drove the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander onto reserves.
Struggles by Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander people for recognition of their rights and interests have been long and arduous (Choo & Hollobach 2003:5). The ‘watershed’ decision made by the High Court of Australia in 1992 (Mabo v Queensland) paved the way for Indigenous Australians to obtain what was ‘stolen’ from them in 1788 when the British ‘invaded’ (ATSIC:1988). The focus of legislation in the past w...
...ause white people benefit from the advantages they receive by just being white, they have a power to incorporate change in America to help people who are less fortunate. However, it seems as though they're all too content and it doesn't directly affect them so they find no serious need to worry.
There have been many different studies that focus particularly on white flight, and the effects of it. Many studies, particularly focus on reasons why it happened, and rarely on the effects of it. This particular paper will focus on the effects of white flight. It will mainly focus on certain effects such as crime and income levels within urban areas.
The assimilation policy was a policy that existed between the 1940’s and the 1970’s, and replaced that of protectionism. Its purpose was to have all persons of aboriginal blood and mixed blood living like ‘white’ Australians, this established practice of removing Aboriginal children (generally half-bloods) from their homes was to bring them up without their culture, and they were encouraged to forget their aboriginal heritage. Children were placed in institutions where they could be 'trained' to take their place in white society. During the time of assimilation Aboriginal people were to be educated for full citizenship, and have access to public education, housing and services. However, most commonly aboriginal people did not receive equal rights and opportunities, for example, their wages were usually less than that paid to the white workers and they often did not receive recognition for the roles they played in the defence of Australia and their contribution to the cattle industry. It wasn’t until the early 1960’s that expendi...
Within Australia, beginning from approximately the time of European settlement to late 1969, the Aboriginal population of Australia experienced the detrimental effects of the stolen generation. A majority of the abducted children were ’half-castes’, in which they had one white parent and the other of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. Following the government policies, the European police and government continued the assimilation of Aboriginal children into ‘white’ society. Oblivious to the destruction and devastation they were causing, the British had believed that they were doing this for “their [Aborigines] own good”, that they were “protecting” them as their families and culture were deemed unfit to raise them. These beliefs caused ...
The rights of Indigenous Australians were restricted by the Government policy of protection and assimilation. The Aboriginal Protection Act was passed in 1869, which gave power over the lives of Aboriginal people to the government, such as where they could live or work. They removed mixed decent Aboriginal children from their families in an attempt to assimilate them into white society. The Child Welfare Act 1939 abandoned this policy and gave Indigenous parents the right to take their children back. But the children were moved far away, and even if they were found and returned, many of them were mistreated and didn’t return the same to their families. This had devastating effects on Indigenous parents, and many white Australians didn’t understand this impact at the time.
Key events in Aboriginal Australian history stem from the time Australia was first discovered in 1788. For instance, when Federation came into existence in 1901, there was a prevailing belief held by non Aboriginal Australians that the Aborigines were a dying race (Nichol, 2005:259) which resulted in the Indigenous people being excluded from the constitution except for two mentions – Section 127 excluded Aborigines from the census and Section 51, part 26, which gave power over Aborigines to the States rather than to the Federal Government. Aboriginal people were officially excluded from the vote, public service, the Armed Forces and pensions. The White Australia mentality/policy Australia as “White” and unfortunately this policy was not abolished until 1972. REFERENCE
Overall racism is a very harmful issue in Australia due to it being a multicultural and diverse country with different cultures and races. This is why if I could change one thing about Australia, it would be so there is no more racism which can be done if we all work together as