tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post3956702020933702629..comments2024-02-11T19:28:27.997+11:00Comments on Personal Reflections: Mr Andrews, Tamworth and Sudanese RefugeesJim Belshawhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-39294131293078928322007-10-08T18:58:00.000+10:002007-10-08T18:58:00.000+10:00Thank you, Dylan, for your comment.I like this typ...Thank you, Dylan, for your comment.I like this type of comment. You feel strongly, but you put forward arguments in a courteous way. <BR/><BR/>I will use your post as a base, not to attack you, but to further tease out the arguments.Jim Belshawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-68410050099100809622007-10-08T17:31:00.000+10:002007-10-08T17:31:00.000+10:00Andrews himself might not be racist, buta) He almo...Andrews himself might not be racist, but<BR/><BR/>a) He almost certainly knowingly played into the hands of voters that are<BR/><BR/>b) At the very least, it's inexcusable *laziness* to judge someone's ability to integrate based on the continent they come from, rather on their own personal backgrounds. Pick 100 people from Sudan and 100 people from Iraq, and I bet at least 25 of the Iraqis would have more trouble adjusting than most of the Sudanese.<BR/><BR/>c) It's also mean-spirited. Unless there really is good evidence that the integration problems that African regufees are having are insurmountable, then surely those having the most difficulty integrating need the *most* help, not to be turned away.<BR/><BR/>d) Last of all, there simply doesn't even seem to be particularly compelling evidence that they're having significant problems at all, relative to other refugee groups, based on crime statistics etc.<BR/><BR/>So whichever way you paint it, it's another black mark against Andrews, who I am ashamed to have as my local representative.Dylan Nicholsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15028032592653986291noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-74460973859330136902007-10-06T23:16:00.000+10:002007-10-06T23:16:00.000+10:00While I agree about "automatic racist crap overloa...While I agree about "automatic racist crap overload" there is no doubt racism behind the positions of some on this matter. Australia is probably no more or less racist than most places, but it -- or xenophobia, or fear, or discomfort -- is a very real phenomenon which I have experienced quite directly. I cand remember walking down Cleveland Street a few years ago with a boy from SBHS who was one of the few Africans that I have encountered there. He was from Sudan. A passer-by told him something charming about getting back to his tree or the jungle or some such. The kid tensed and I quietly said "Take no notice. We're not all as ignorant as that person." That's just one of many incidents I could relate. M could tell you some he has experienced, so could that Aboriginal artist Andy you met at Malcolm's funeral. That individual level exists, and so does a degree of institutional racism, though things have improved. Soemtimes the racism is disguised or indirect, and then people start talking about "culture" instead. I know you are sensitive about this having been on the receiving end of some bad stuff, but I don't think we should either overestimate or underestimate the reality of racism; certainly it is not a concept to embrace or even condone.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-23626883605642602492007-10-06T10:57:00.000+10:002007-10-06T10:57:00.000+10:00I feel very strongly on this one, Neil, although I...I feel very strongly on this one, Neil, although I tried to write in an objective fashion.<BR/><BR/>If you look at this one in the way that I did, the villians are first the yellow press for riding with a slanted story. Then the general media for their attempts to put the debate in a racial frame. And also our fellow bloggers who also slammed it into a racial frame.<BR/><BR/>There are two victims in all this.<BR/><BR/>The first is the Sudanese community itself. The second is the broader Australian community who have, yet again, been typed in global terms as racist. <BR/><BR/>When are we going to become mature enough to have a sensible discussion on issues such as this without an automatic racist crap overload?<BR/><BR/>I think that it is clear that the resettlement programs are under-resourced for what we want to do. Why are we not talking about this?Jim Belshawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-40095909161538557202007-10-06T09:40:00.000+10:002007-10-06T09:40:00.000+10:00We find ourselves in agreement on this, though as ...We find ourselves in agreement on this, though as I remark in a footnote to my post of yesterday commending Legal Eagle, no matter what Andrews actually said the damage has been done and the race genie has been let out of the bottle.ninglunhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14053880310004539126noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-32414970261028007712007-10-06T07:27:00.000+10:002007-10-06T07:27:00.000+10:00Good morning, lexcen. Nice to see you up and about...Good morning, lexcen. Nice to see you up and about so early. I hope that the weather in Melbourne is good.<BR/><BR/>Yes, they do stand out, and that's a problem. I thought that Legal Eagle had a very thoughtful post - http://legalsoapbox.wordpress.com/2007/10/05/playing-the-race-card/.<BR/><BR/>Adverse publicity attached to a visually different group -especially one that is so tall -does create fear.<BR/><BR/>The earlier telephone story was incredibly sad, but did not surprise me at the time. There is a huge knowledge gap, among other things, between war torn Darfor and suburban Australia.<BR/><BR/>I personally believe that we should take refugees from all countries. But if we are going to, and this is a core message in my post, we owe it to them and ourselves to make sure that the support is there. And that includes proper introductory training in culture and language.Jim Belshawhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10075614280789984767noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24338064.post-76321849071317633202007-10-06T07:00:00.000+10:002007-10-06T07:00:00.000+10:00The Sudanese will continue to be a topic of discus...The Sudanese will continue to be a topic of discussion because quite frankly, they do stand out in the crowd. Physical appearances aside, they might as well be from another planet if the recent tragic story of how a Sudanese family didn't know how to use a telephone in an emergency is any indication.Lexcenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17856993035719777231noreply@blogger.com