Hi all
Too often I hear racist terms in our daily life. And some people deliberately express it…
You can find terms such as “wogs suck” “lebs blah blah” “kill one slope a day” etc etc.
Don’t we live in a multicultural society? Why is racism so popular???This is pretty sad…
JessJess where you been living for the last X number of years of your life???
Racism, social injustices, violence/crime….all realities of life; sure they are not fair/right or wanted, but they exist. My take is simple, you don’t like it, do something about it….in this case, don’t use those terms/expressions, and wherever/whenever possible, do your bit to help out by instructing those around you who do, that it is not acceptable behaviour!!!
Jo
Jess:
i know how you feel. Sometimes I feel the same as you for a variety of reasons. Can’t we just all get along?[strum]
in answer to your question: Yes racism still exists in Australia. However things are better than they were say 40 years ago. Did you know that it is only since 1967 that Aboriginees were counted on the census (population and stats count every 5 years).
I admit that personally, when i was younger, I used to be racist against certain groups in a passive way. Looking back on my reasons for this shameful past attitude I would say put it fundamentally down to ignorance and wanting to feel superior.
The answer to racism surely has to be different droups socialising, mixing, working together in the community. Pretty soon people start thinking “hang on maybe these people aren’t all bad after all”.
Kind Regards,
TimHere we go again bash australia from within.
Maybe to put your comments into context you should travel overseas and see how racist Australia really isnt.
Basically what i am trying to say is that racism isnt an inherent problem solely in white australia.
Many cultures are racist!!
“Never argue with an idiot, as they will bring you down to their level and beat you with experience”
Superted:
Here we go again bash australia from within.Maybe to put your comments into context you should travel overseas and see how racist Australia really isnt.Are you asserting that Australia has no racism in it whatsoever?
And if you are not how is what we are discussing bashing Australia?
Racism exists everywhere not only in Australia.
So many groups play the “racist” card to get what they want. This is the bashing I refer to and is the same people that actually create devisiveness.
A multicultural australia is a great thing but some elements that make it up are in fact just as racist as parts of the majority.
“Never argue with an idiot, as they will bring you down to their level and beat you with experience”
without being longwinded, there’s good and bad “everywhere”(read the papers)
Ignorance isn’t biased.
REDWING
“Money is a currency, like electricity and it requires momentum to make it Effective”
Count The Currency With This Online Positive Cashflow Calculatoragree redwing
“Never argue with an idiot, as they will bring you down to their level and beat you with experience”
Originally posted by agile:in answer to your question: Yes racism still exists in Australia. However things are better than they were say 40 years ago.
And you know from personal experience what things were like 40 years ago??? You are well travelled, well versed in the racial wars and discrimination that goes on between men, against women, societies, cultures???
When you have lived it, experienced it, fully understood it’s consequences, then and only THEN will you see how things are in this country and in those of foreign nations!!!
Gimme a break!!!!
Jo
Go SuperTed,
You’re on the money.Australia is far less racist than many countries elsewhere.
I have lived overseas and travelled to many countries and can only say what a privilige it is to live here.
Australia and Australians are far more tolerant of other races than, for example some countries are of their OWN races.In many countries, it is reinforced by an entranched class structure against their own people, using a system of wealth and therefore power, against poverty and therefore helplessness.
Thank God for Australia and the opportunity to to live here.
KP
Of course racism exists in other countries too…although i was told by some kiwis that situation is much better there—i don’t know if it’s true…
and why do certain racial groups get racist terms the most often? in particular, Italian and Greek people, Asian people, Lebanese people…did they do anything particularly unacceptable??? anyway i haven’t heard too much racist terms toward those who are born here, white and speak English as their first language(true aussie?)
Jess
you havent heard the term “skip” then
There are a lot of abbrevaited aussie slang terms that get mixed up in the “racist” debate. It depends on how and when they are used that really constitutes racsim.
On another tangent the country that is the victim of the most racists slurs from the rest of the world at the moment, is the USA..but then thats different.
“Never argue with an idiot, as they will bring you down to their level and beat you with experience”
SuperTed,
I really love your signature!!!! [winking]
Jo
I have emailed Jo/Monopoly and we have agreed that this thread has gotten a little out of hand and off topic. I would like to say that I fundamentally agree with Jo’s position of racism existing in Australia in addition to other types of discrimination.
I also agree with other posters that racism in Australia is not as bad as other countries.
It is my personal opinion that historically things are improving in Australia in terms of racism and discrimination. Witness the demise of One nation and Pauline Hanson as evidence of this.
Regards,
TimTim/Agile,
You are correct, racism is and as you have attested to, often transformed into matters of a “personal” nature, this is not because of intellectual facts, but as the result of personal views and experiences of real people, with real emotions.
There are far too many levels of discrimination be they gender, racial, cultural or socioeconomically based, and all are sensitive issues, hence to further avoid the possiblity of inflaming this debate, I will respectfully agree, and leave the matter to each person’s individual take. Unfortunately we cannot eliminate racism from our world, but perhaps with a little bit of understanding and consideration we can learn to live in harmony as best we can, regardless of the land in which we live.
Jo
Adding a quick 2c on the bosses time. In the push to “political correctness to the max” many seem to be feeling guilty that they have a bias. Bias is natural and should be seen as such as we would not be able to form an opinion. I like yellow more than I like blue, but I like blue more than I like red.
Having an irrational bias without looking at the reason for your bias (prejudice) is the bit we should be worried about. You may have been treated badly by a particular person of a particular nationality and that will make you wary of the next person of that nationality (I guess if you had been burned by a particular suburb or property type you would be the same). Keeping an open mind to the next person of that nationality or property in that suburb, in my mind, points to maturity.
In this country we can afford to be less prejucided in other countries I guess. Afetr all we don’t live with the fear of violence and war (mostly). Those that have will have been brought up to be insular and fearful of others will take longer to get to where we are….I try to be a good example of how I would like others to be.
______________________
I know I can, I know I can
not sure why I’m posting in this thread, but anyway………..
RACISM exists in EVERY country in the world.. I’ve lived in Asia for close to 17years now, and I can tell you, I’ve seen VERY STRONG or BAD RACISM nearly every day here, in 1 form or another……
Most of it is much worse than “name calling”
Australia is a very tolerant country. We DO however have our fair share of biggoted rednecks out there……
Jess, I’m not sure what you are trying to drive at here…
Yes, is an “ideal world” racism would not exist… Just let me know when you find that planet…. will get in my rocketship and follow the rest of us there….
Until then, I continue to live with an open mind…. People who make racist comments, or are racist in their actions, only show how stupid/shallow & insecure they are……. And those people will be the ones who end up road kill in the highway of life…..
Cheers
Scott
You may know the cost of everything…. but what about the value ????
I remember a couple of years ago I went to a meeting of the Technical Traders Assn (shares) and after the meeting most of the people went to dinner.
I sat at a table of 12 people – 2 GReeks, 3 Italians, 2 Asians, 2 Indians, 3 Anglo-Saxon. We had a fabulous time, and at one point I actually sat there and felt proud to be Australian. Nobody had even thought twice about the diversity of backgrounds, we had a common interest and that was all that mattered.
Racism exists, but the more opportunities we take to experience other races and cultures and realise that we’re not so different under the skin, the better.Keep smiling
Felicity
the short answer is ‘yes’, they are shockers, and it’s worse in Q’land.
BUT I don’t know if the answer would be ‘yes’ if I grew up here. Then it would be like, “huh? Compared to what?” And if I grew up in the US or South Africa, then it might be ‘no’ (though that’s debatable) – by comparison. But, compared to what? The United Nations?
Guess what, there’s no country in the world that’s not racist or bigoted in some way. Even saying a country is racist is.. ‘country’ bashing, which is bigoted…so that’s therefore hypocrytical.
OK, let me try that again…. I have heard some shocking racism here which I have never heard anything like in NZ. Against aboriginals, and also other ‘races’. First week here overheard: get off the road you f^^*&^*&^ &(*&(*&(*&.
etc etc.In regards to racism against other ‘races’ – I blame the media for the hideously biased ‘press-releases’ passed off as ‘news’, meant to divide the world and create “baddies” – so that any person of the same race as that week’s world news baddie is the victim of mistrust and racist judgement on a mass scale. Sheesh, I feel so bad for them!
I’ve heard shocking racism here against the aboriginals. OK, you only have 1 percent indigenous people, and the country is vast and they have a zillion different languages ( learned this when I wanted to learn how to say ‘hello’ in Aboriginal!!) and so because of the language thing and the geographic separation thing it’s harder for them to vote/act/decide as ‘one people’ I guess, and they don’t seem to be integrated so much into every strata of society as the Maori are in NZ for example, and historically people haven’t been so kind to them, and there was no treaty and no ‘sorry’, BUT, here’s the hopeful part, that really could change extremely quickly if the country put their mind to it and made it a priority. I find it hard to comprehend the aboriginals here – what it means to be one, the culture, what they want, what should really happen ideally, etc, simply because I have hardly ever met any. Maybe only 3 or 4 during the entire 9 years I’ve lived in Aus. Like, where are they all?
Ok, they’re sitting under a tree in Adelaide at the park, and they’re at Gove hanging out at the airport, and they’re doing a cultural show at Byron Bay, and they’re blocking off the street in redfern the other night when I was driving with a friend, but where are my aboriginal friends and neighbours? I wish they would come out and play so I could get to know them better.
joy to the world
Oh yeah, I have this other story. OK this bigtime Aussie ‘household name’ promoter was putting on this big show in NZ which ran for months.
I was on the production team and – this was on the first day of casting – there were Yanks over from the US, and this whole big dealio thing was going on which I was amongst – anyway so at one point this big Household Name promoter (“H”) was asking me if I knew anyone he should audition for the lead role as they still didn’t have their lead role and needed someone with a great deal of personal power – ‘Mana’. So I told him of someone I knew who was amazing and had the right qualities. “what does he look like?” “well, he’s imposing, 6 foot 4, Maori…”
“I’m not casting a f*(*(*(*(* Maori”, said ‘H’.!!!!!!! So guess what I said!!!
I said: “If I went to the papers with what you just said, you totally wouldn’t have a show in NZ, people would just boycott it, and you would so never be able to do anything in this country ever again.”
(which was completely true – the NZ media would have had a field day : “racist Aussie promoter booed at airport”.!!!…..)
ha! He was really really mad!! and I nearly got arsed off the show!!! but then this genius person who was also on the creative team (who hired me) went to bat for me. (I wouldn’t have cared anyway, I was so fired up with righteous indignation.)
So anyway they didn’t end up casting a Maori as the lead, but they did cast a Samoan as the second lead, who was brilliant, and altogether they did end up with a really great and diverse cast that had the right sort of ‘visual contrasts’. OK it was still a bit dodgy cause all the good characters were white and all the baddies were black, but hey, I can’t change the world on my own.
And I stayed on the show, and actually noticed that ‘H’ had an unspoken respect for me after that. He’s actually not bad company, if you like that sort of thing. (an acquired taste!) I even got invited to dinner at his house once, then ended up coming to Aus and working for him here for a few months even. So it all worked out plus I felt reallllllly good that I stood up for my beliefs.
joy to the world
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