Australia’s race discrimination commissioner rejects the notion of “casual racism”, warning prejudice is having a significant cost on the economy.
“It’s much more than skin deep, it can really scar you in on your soul,” Giridharan Sivaraman told AAP.
“It’s in every aspect of our society.”
The commissioner said one way this manifested was in the workplace, with job hunters with Anglo-friendly names more likely to get a call back for a gig.
People with qualifications from non-English speaking countries were more likely to be employed in jobs below their levels of experience, or in roles in entirely different fields.
In an address to the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday, Mr Sivaraman will say Australia is at a “critical time” where a whole-of-government approach is needed to tackle racism.
He will call on Labor to commit to the national anti-racism framework, handed down by the Australian Human Rights Commission last November.
“It’s the racism that’s in our systems and institutions, it’s stopping people from being able to thrive or simply be safe,” he said ahead of his address.
“Taking action against racism doesn’t take anything from any person. It actually improves society for everyone.”
The commissioner said Australia needed to face the issue with “courage and honesty” as to why this keeps happening.
“There needs to be fundamental change … that’s the real conversation that we should all be having,” he said.
Mr Sivaraman said the issue needed investment as opposed to the ad hoc and disjointed approaches from past governments.
The voice to parliament referendum, held in October 2023, had led to an increase in discrimination and prejudice against Indigenous people, he added.
“There can be no racial justice in this country without justice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, and that is abundantly clear,” Mr Sivaraman said.
The commissioner said different ethnic groups could also be targeted in Australia during points of rupture in society.
He pointed to the “bile” that was directed towards people of Asian heritage during the COVID-19 pandemic, and most recently, soaring levels of anti-Semitism and anti-Palestinian sentiment fuelled by the war in Gaza.
The Australian Human Rights Commission will next week launch an online survey to ask university students and staff across the nation about experiences of racism.
Mr Sivaraman said this would be done to get a “baseline” of prejudice at the nation’s higher education institutions.
The survey will be distributed via email by universities and participants will remain anonymous.
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