Are you multicultural or are you Australian?

[Donte]

I’ve been pondering for a while about the whole ‘multicultural’ notion.


We often hear ‘multicultural people’ or ‘multicultural experiences’ etc but what exactly does that mean?


I am from a culturally and linguistically diverse background, (was born and raised in a non-English speaking country), like the 46% of our population. However, I never think of my self as ‘diverse’ or ‘multicultural’. This is a term other people have created to describe me and my experiences. I am me. A human being like everyone else.


The term ‘multicultural’ often implies ‘different’ or ‘diverse’, but different from what or whom? Well, clearly, from the white-Anglo Australians.


So, my experience has been that in Australia today we have the dominant or mainstream White-Anglo culture and the ‘multicultural’ culture - anything and anyone who doesn’t fit in the white-Anglo category.


The reality of course is that the white-Anglo segment of the population is also part of the whole ‘multicultural’ society, even if it’s the dominant one.


This is never viewed in my opinion, its proper light, perhaps for political reasons and the hidden racism that still lurks in the background of today’s mainstream culture.


Interestingly enough, even non white-Anglo Australians have come to accept this white propaganda and every time I hear them refer to ‘Australians’ they connote ‘anglo’. They usually say I’m Greek or Turkish or Maltese etc. - and any reference to ‘Australians’ seems to indicate ‘the others’, ‘the whites’.


This of course has created an ‘us’ and ‘them’ mentality which stems from the remnants of the ‘white australia’ policy and the ‘melting pot’ days.


So, who is really an Australian? What makes you true blue Aussie? Is the woman covered in burqa from head to toe who’s been naturalized three decades ago an Australian? And if so, equal like the fifth or sixth generation white-Anglo neighbors of hers?


Often, you’ll find that this is not the case. I propose that it’s time to scrap the labels, erase the terms and start treating all people of Australia with equity despite their looks, skin color, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion etc


How does that sound?

[james1]

Hello quirkywords, rx and Summer Rose,

Really nice to hear all your thoughts. It feels like you're all more sad about it than me, haha!

It seems everybody's experience of finding a home and belonging in Australia is different, and I certainly don't mean to speak for any Chinese Australians other than myself. I tend to look at ethnicity and culture being just one part of my own experience. Family attitudes, friendship groups and personal values are all other factors that mix with ethnicity and culture, and this will vary wildly for everyone.

I actually see my cultural differences overall as a real opportunity, and I love learning to cook and share Chinese foods. I even like talking to strangers about my experience of my Chinese heritage. I don't think any of this is bad at all. I just hope that, as Australia becomes increasingly diverse, the perception of what being 'Australian' means also gets wider.

James

[Guest_1584]

l didn't have anything sad about it myself, growing up in Melb doubt you couldn't have gotten much more diverse than my area but it was just life as usual never thought twice about any differences. l liked them, people were just people.

[Gabs_]

That's an interesting comment - I was literally talking to somebody yesterday (she's a PHD sociologist and an Australian-Singaporean-French) and we were comparing different cities in Australia for cultural diversity (we have worked and studied in multiple cities) and we both found that Melbourne is such a melting pot of cultural diversity, that, like you said, people are just people. Whilst there is a lot of cultural diversity spread across the cities, some cities have very clear lines of delineation between suburbs or areas (eg. "the Korean side of the railway"), where Melbourne seems to have "melted" (for lack of a better word) across cultural lines. I wonder if maybe it has had to do with that Melbourne had such an influx of cultural diversity in 50's, 60's, 70's, so they are now into the 2nd, 3rd or 4th generation, so those cultural lines are blurred.

Personally, my father moved to Australia in the late 70's, and he refers to himself as an "Aussie with a funny accent", so it's interesting and very insightful to see how people from different cultural backgrounds view themselves.

[TheBigBlue]

I feel like being a multicultural family is what makes us Australian.

I have an Aussie mum & my dad came from Europe. He has a mixed background. 1 parent from Poland, 1 from Belgium. English is not his first language but I think the fact he looks just like any other white Australian may have made his change into Aussie life easier than what others may have experienced.

But my extended family is so mixed & I absolutely love it. One aunt married an Italian, they have kids, my sister married a Greek, they have kids, another sister is married to an English guy. I’m dating a guy who had a parent from Sri Lanka & a parent from India.

One Christmas we all got together & we had some family visiting from Poland. I remember my dad, my Italian uncle & my Polish uncle all singing happy birthday around a Christmas cake as it was the only song they all knew in English 🤣🤣

I think my extended family is as Aussie as they come. I think my dad played a huge part of influencing my opinion of other cultures growing up because he was appreciative of everyone. The local seafood shop was run by a greek family, dad would learn greek words & phrases so he could greet them & thank them. He grew up in an arid, rural town with a large indigenous community, he calls the indigenous his brothers because he grew up playing with them.

I think where you live in this country will influence your interaction with other nationalities. But on the whole, it’s ALL these cultures that make us Australian.

[james1]

Hello Gabs_

That's interesting to hear about your comments on Melbourne. I haven't lived there before. In Sydney, we definitely have culturally aligned suburbs, and they're pretty well-known across the suburb. It's both good and bad - some suburbs get put down for being whatever stereotype you want to associate with that culture, but it does make it easier for people of that culture to feel at home among people they know. Other than a brief two year window, my parents lived in areas that were very Chinese for that exact reason.

Hello TheBigBlue, thanks for that. It's really nice to hear what a positive experience you've had with your extended family, how multicultural it is, and how that is what makes you feel very Australian. It's a wonderful story!

James