Is Australia a racist country?

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Geez. That's a tough one to answer. The country which brought you terra nullius, the White Australia policy, the Stolen Generation, Tampa and stop the boats clearly loves to welcome the cold, the tired, the lonely, the poor.

Here's the definitive response to that question of a racist Australia from Kevin Dunn, the foremost racism researcher in Australia and a professor at Western Sydney University.

"Empirically and legally, Australia has a racist history and a racist present," he says.

"Australia also has an anti-racism history and present. The challenge for Australia is to advance anti-racism and to challenge racism wherever it occurs."

His research, published last year, revealed the "pressing need to address our uncoordinated approach around anti-racism".

So we have good news.

Our newest Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman is on board.

His aim is to develop and promote a national anti-racism framework, to improve our understanding of what he calls racial literacy, the languge and skills to talk about racism; and to push for bipartisan support.

Oh my god. He was so enthusiastic and optimistic about a better future, I got carried away by his energy.

Then I remembered the lack of bipartisanship of Peter Dutton and it was as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped on my head.

So why are we asking that depressing question right now? I swear to god I would never have thought to put the words "poor,........

© Canberra Times