Multiculturalism

The term 'multiculturalism' was introduced in Australia by Al Grassby, the Minister for Immigration in G. Whiltam's government. The term was used to address Australia's cultural diversity. In general terms, 'multiculturalism' can be understood to signify at least three different issues:
a) cultural and demographic diversity
b) a form of world view or philosophy/theory
c) form of a social policy/practice

To what extent is Australia a multicultural country? I believe that multiculturalism adequately depicts the cultural reality in Australia. More than 60% of all population is of non-Anglo-Saxon background. In early 1970's with the Whitlam's Government endorsed the policy of multiculturalism and assured its bipartisan support. The idea of multicultural policy was to make a positive impact across three areas of social life: cultural identity, social justice and economic efficiency.
a) As cultural identity is closely linked to people's Ll, the preservation of cummunity languages is extremely important to migrants. Language determines effective communication, which is vital to social and economic aspects of individuals and the society as a whole. In Australia English is a formal national language, but community languages are encouraged to be maintained and utilized due to their potential contribution to a 'healty' society, culture and economy. This issue is going to be further discussed in Question 3.
b) Social justice issue relates to questions of equality, human rights and equal opportunity. Multiculturalism aims for removal of racial, ethnic, cultural, religious, linguistic etc. barriers within the society. Instead it promotes a peaceful coexistence of many diverse racial, cultural and religious communities and individuals.
c) Bilingualism can have a positive economic impact in a sense that bilinguals can actively contribute to the growth of Australian economy, especially in the field of international trade.

The introduction of multicultural social policy in Australia implied some major undertalings in the sphere of education, media, etc. Changes in the educational sphere were particularly obvious. In the mid 1970's 'multicultural education was seen as an important means of winning community support for multiculturalism' (Theophanous, 1995, p.399). The people were familiarized with various facts about ethnic and cultural diversity with the view that this would discourage existent discriminatory practices and raise people's awareness. In the late 1980's the National Languages and Literacy Institute of Australia (NLLIA) was established to carry on the National Language Policy . This institute was to 'carry on national leadership and guidance in language education issues' (ibid). There were of course other changes in media, arts, etc. I think it can be argued that multiculturalism encouraged the development of many positivwe aspects in our society, including raising multicultural awareness, reducing racism, taking positive advantages of bilingualism in a society, etc.

Of course, multicultural social policy in Australia does not imply a society without conflicts. To avooid publis resistance the successive governments emphasized that multicultural policy does not imply a disregard of some core societal values but that it in fact encourages commitment to AAustralian society and its democratic principles. The possibility of a backlash against multiculturalism is still real. As we have seen in the 1990's Australia faced the emergence of a racism through Pauline Hansons's One Nation Party. Some questions about patriotism have been raised lately. The question of patriotism and loyalty to Australia has become even more of an issue in the last ten years, when many second generation Australian migrants went back to their parent's war-torn countries to fight (Croats, Serbs, Albanians, Tamils, etc). Beside these problems regarding citizens' response to ethnic diversity and their homeland, there are also other questions such as, for example, the question regarding obviously unjust distribution of national resources in the sphere of multicultural services.

Husband (1995) wrote, that he was 'perplexed' by Australian multiculturalism. He pointed out that the reality of everday life does not work in conjunction with a multicultural policy, despite all good intentaions. He gives an example of 'share of resources' and Australian television. In the Towards a National Agenda for Multiculturalism, produced by the Advisory Council on Multicultural Affairs in September 1988, it is stated that all national resources should be qually distributed. However, three out of five TV channels are commercial and suitable for Anglo-Celtic population. Therefore, Australia still faces many problems related to equal opportunity, racism and equality. The perception of multiculturalism has changed in the recent years. Instead of 'multiculturalism' our present government is talking about 'ethnic...' or 'cultural diversity'. Even though the perception of multiculturalism has changed, Australian social reality is still culturally and ethnically diverse.

To conclude, Australia is a multicultural society at least in so far as cultural reality and diversity of our country is concerned. Multiculturalism in Australia is a demographic fact. Even though our present government is hesitant to talk about multiculturalism, the ethno-cultural heterogeneity and cultural specific requirements of migrant population will not go away. The government will therefore have to continue to provide various services, which were introduced under the banner of multiculturalism over the past decades. All this points the fact that multiculturalism is becoming a pervasive reality in our society.