Cirrus@Austlit

'Since invasion and subsequent colonisation, Australia has a history of preferring and privileging people who have white skin. As I have remarked elsewhere:

Whiteness in its contemporary form in Australian society is culturally based. It controls institutions, which are extensions of White Australian culture and is governed by the values, beliefs and assumptions of that culture and its history. Australian culture is less White than it used to be, but Whiteness forms the centre and is commonly referred to in public discourse as the ‘mainstream’ or ‘middle ground’ (Moreton-Robinson 1998:11).' (Extract)

'Congratulations to the organisers of the ‘Unmasking Whiteness’ conference for their courage in putting on the first ever conference dealing specifically with Whiteness in Australia. It does indeed take courage given that whiteness is, I have found, a disturbing and perturbing topic, not only to white people but also, I believe, to people of colour.' (Extract)

'Black Heart

My heart is black as Cherbourg although my skin is fair' (Extract)

'Analyses or descriptions of the history of race relations (and cultural production) in what has been called Australia for about a hundred years, have frequently been informed by two orientations that might be simply categorised as the white blindfold and the black armband positions. In many cases, these two mindsets can be observed in other Western cultures although the interaction between them, and the society around them, gets played out differently in particular places at particular times.' (Extract)

'The last decade ofthe twentieth century has seen some highly significant symbolic advances for Indigenous people in Australia and Canada representing golden opportunities for their respective governments to advance the reconciliation process. But the political will to capitalise on them has varied enormously. This paper focuses on two case studies drawn from Australia and Canada which look at Indigenous people's continuing struggle for land rights.' (Extract)

'[T]he point being made is not that the discourse of enrichment places Anglo-Celtic culture in a more important position than other migrant cultures. If this was the case, it would simply be reflecting reality. More importantly, this discourse assigns to migrant cultures a different mode of existence to Anglo-Celtic culture. While Anglo-Celtic culture merely and unquestionably exists, migrant cultures exist for the latter. (Ghassan Hage)' (Extract)

'Something about the millennial moment is piquing our interest in the past, more than usual it seems. Histories of cities can provide a valuable window into the people, conditions and events which have shaped the kinds of metropolis in which most of us live today. The Mayne Inheritance is one such book, set as it is, in the rough frontier town of nineteenth century Brisbane. It is a most welcome addition, to the social and political history of the city.' (Introduction)