Australia as “the most successful multicultural society in the world”
- Publication Type:
- Thesis
- Issue Date:
- 2021
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This thesis explores, in what ways and to what extent, Australia’s claim to exceptionalism as “the most successful multicultural society in the world” can be supported by evidence. The reiteration of this claim by successive Australian national governments is tested in a series of increasingly focussed analyses. Beginning with a comparison at the international level with other multicultural societies in liberal democracies (Canada, New Zealand, UK, US, Sweden and the Netherlands), the thesis then investigates the nature of power in multicultural Australia on the basis of equity and inclusion, key ideas in the multicultural mantra.
What might be expected if “multicultural” is introduced as an additional modifier into claims of being a successful and even the most successful society in the world? Four parameters – of economic participation and opportunity, state policies on cultural diversity, social equality and opportunity, and levels of human development – are used to test the comparative claims at a global level. These parameters are then applied through a detailed analysis of both formal and informal power positions and structures in Australia.
Finding an appropriate single marker of “multicultural” is complex, as there are both objective and subjective factors that can be operationalised. Typically in Australia the current officially sanctioned terminology “culturally and linguistically diverse” (CALD) refers to an ensemble of criteria including at least one of country of own and parents’ birth, language spoken at home, faith, and self-identified heritage. Choosing the self-identified cultural/ethnic heritage – of ancestry – as recorded in the Census return captures the subjective aspect and some of the objective overtones. The research then explores how this independent variable is associated with the dependent variable of occupation as expressed in professional and income groups. The approach also demonstrates similar patterns in the realms of social, cultural and political power, leadership and influence.
The key outcomes point to an apparent hierarchy of power, class and status in which whiteness (Anglo-Celtic and Northern European origin), Abrahamic faith (Christian or Jewish rather than Muslim), and male gender characterise those who hold the dominant positions across the board. These patterns reflect the persistence of a racial ethnocracy founded in an earlier period marked by White Australian ideology, rather than an inclusive and open democracy reflecting multicultural values and opportunities. However the disjunction between rhetoric and reality appears to be bridgeable, should public policy be implemented that better institutionalises the aspirations of equity and inclusion.
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