| I don't even know where to start sometimes. |
 I don't even know where to start sometimes.
|
Feb. 23rd, 2011 @ 11:50 am 
|
|---|
I'm watching the last Q&A. There's a representative from One Nation there, who's declaring that the problem with Muslim immigration is that "we have a religion", etc, this whole extended speech that basically assumes Australian = Christian. A mixture of outrage/anger and laughter from the audience to various comments, and he says that he doesn't "understand why this is funny".
Because, Ian Nelson, Australia is not a "Christian country". We are a secular country, and we are, actually, a multicultural country, even if a lot of people who talk about multiculturalism don't seem to have any real idea of what that means and as a nation we're actually pretty terrible at being multicultural.
We're reasonably good about trying, at least, not to be discriminatory. We're not so good at intercultural inclusiveness - we have a bit of a problem with people who think that the way to recognise a multiplicity of religions and cultures is to try and eliminate the outward expressions of the dominant culture.
I think that's wrong. I think that the way you recognise that you have a plurality of cultures is to recognise all of them. I think that the problem of the dominance of Christian festivals - though celebrated in a thoroughly secular way - is best addressed by promoting the widespread celebration of the other festivals as well. I want an Australia where Eid and Diwali and Chinese New Year are a big deal, not one where Christmas isn't.
As for the people bitching about why Australia as a whole should be paying for the reconstruction of Queensland: Because Queensland is part of Australia. Because this is our country. So shut up.
|
![[User Picture Icon]](https://v2.dreamwidth.org/367198/21451) |
| From: | ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png) copracat |
|---|
| Date: |
February 27th, 2011 07:11 am (UTC) |
|---|
|
|
|
|
(Link) |
|
I'm so glad the audience responded as they did.
![[User Picture Icon]](https://v2.dreamwidth.org/3974986/75896) |
| From: | sami |
|---|
| Date: |
February 28th, 2011 04:02 am (UTC) |
|---|
|
|
|
|
(Link) |
|
Happily, even in Queensland (our most redneck state), One Nation's viewpoint is that of a distinct minority in this country. Our politics, despite recent issues, are still such that the Queensland Premier can respond to a question about the "dangerous drift towards multiculturalism" by pointing out that she's almost fifty, and there were waves of immigrants when she was growing up, and there's no "drift" now that wasn't there in the sixties and seventies.
Which boils down to a very, very polite form of "get over it", but I think it's a positive thing that high-profile politicians can still just dismiss hostility to immigrants that way.
Sadly Australian politics aren't as kind, overall, to "boat people" - studies show that people are, for example, vastly better-disposed towards asylum-seekers who come by plane than those who come by boat, despite boat people being far more likely to be in genuine need - but I think progress is still going in the right direction.
Of course, our situation is kind of different from the American one, because the concept of "undocumented immigrant" doesn't really... work. Some people have tried to pick up the "illegal immigrant" terminology, but that gets the response that seeking asylum is not illegal, so there, pretty much.
It's hard to get into Australia entirely undocumented, simply because we have no land borders, and we do have a coast guard.
|
|
| Top of Page |
Powered by Dreamwidth Studios |
