Australia
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Australia, like many colonialist societies, was created by the massive influx of settlers and repression of indigenous peoples. Until the middle of the twentieth century, Australia had many discriminatory and openly racist policies that affected both indigenous people and people of color. A great influx of immigrants beginning after World War II prompted the Australian government to change these policies and adopt a multiculturalist perspective. In 1975, the Racial Discrimination Act was passed; its enforcement is monitored by the Australian Human Rights & Equal Opportunity Commission. In 1990 the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission was created to include indigenous people in the government process. In 1999, the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act was enacted with the goal of removing barriers that are unfairly blocking the roles that women can play in the workplace.. Though these efforts have improved the lives of indigenous people and people of color, there are still issues of inequality in areas including income, health, housing, and education.
More Information on Multiculturalism in Australia
Equal Opportunity Laws for Review– The Australian – June 2, 2009
Women: The Life of the Party – The Australian – March 28, 2009
Raiding Powers for Human Rights Body – The Australian – January 14, 2009
Australia Must Affirm Its Commitment to Multiculturalism—The Age (Petro Georgiou) - October 9, 2008
Australian Equal Opportunity Laws
Phillips, S. (Ed.) (2001). Everyday Diversity: Australian Multiculturalism and Reconciliation in Practice. Altona, Vic.: Common Ground.
Piquet, M. (2000). Australian Multicultural Equity and Fair Go. In E. Kennedy-Dubourdieu (Ed.), Race and Inequality: World Perspectives on Affirmative Action. Burlington, Vermont: Ashgate Publishing.
Braithwaite, V. & Bush, J. (1998). Affirmative Action in Australia: a Consensus-Based Dialogic Approach. NWSA Journal, 10, 115.
Australian Multiculturalism for a New Century: Towards Inclusiveness—National Multicultural Advisory Council—April 1999
