2 years ago
AUSTRALIANS VALUE OUR DIVERSITY
ANDREW GILES MP
The latest Mapping Social Cohesion report by the Scanlon Foundation shows a heightened awareness of racism in the Australian community.
Sixty per cent of respondents to this year’s survey described racism as a ‘very big’ or ‘fairly big’ problem in Australia, up from 40 percent in 2020.
The report also reiterates the strong support for multiculturalism in Australia, with 86 per cent of respondents agreeing that multiculturalism has been good for Australia.
However, the pervasive negative sentiment towards the Muslim community and those of Chinese, Iraqi and Sudanese backgrounds, while a decrease on previous surveys, is of considerable concern and must be addressed as a matter of urgency.
The introduction of the Australian Cohesion Index to this year’s report enables a deeper understanding of social cohesion in Australia by blending objective indicators such as income inequality, the unemployment rate and education levels with the subjective findings from the Mapping Social Cohesion surveys.
This new metric found that social cohesion is going backwards, with the Index dropping six points compared to the 2007-08 benchmark.
It has been more than a decade since the last substantive review of multicultural policy and the lack of interest on the part of the Morrison-Joyce Government in this space is clear.
Australians value our nation’s diversity and the contribution that migrants make to our communities.
But the success of our multiculturalism should not be taken for granted.
Rising concerns about racism in the community requires action and consistent leadership.
Labor continues to call on the Morrison-Joyce Government to tackle racism by committing to a national anti-racism strategy.
We need leadership that brings Australians together, not divides us.
Sixty per cent of respondents to this year’s survey described racism as a ‘very big’ or ‘fairly big’ problem in Australia, up from 40 percent in 2020.
The report also reiterates the strong support for multiculturalism in Australia, with 86 per cent of respondents agreeing that multiculturalism has been good for Australia.
However, the pervasive negative sentiment towards the Muslim community and those of Chinese, Iraqi and Sudanese backgrounds, while a decrease on previous surveys, is of considerable concern and must be addressed as a matter of urgency.
The introduction of the Australian Cohesion Index to this year’s report enables a deeper understanding of social cohesion in Australia by blending objective indicators such as income inequality, the unemployment rate and education levels with the subjective findings from the Mapping Social Cohesion surveys.
This new metric found that social cohesion is going backwards, with the Index dropping six points compared to the 2007-08 benchmark.
It has been more than a decade since the last substantive review of multicultural policy and the lack of interest on the part of the Morrison-Joyce Government in this space is clear.
Australians value our nation’s diversity and the contribution that migrants make to our communities.
But the success of our multiculturalism should not be taken for granted.
Rising concerns about racism in the community requires action and consistent leadership.
Labor continues to call on the Morrison-Joyce Government to tackle racism by committing to a national anti-racism strategy.
We need leadership that brings Australians together, not divides us.