Attitudes to immigration and cultural diversity in Australia

Abstract

This article considers Australian attitudes to immigration and cultural diversity. It argues that Australia and Canada are the most receptive to immigration among western nations. The average of 25 surveys conducted in Australia in the period 1999-2010 finds 52% in support of the current immigration level or in support of an increased intake, 43% in support of reduction, and 5% uncertain. While there can be no definitive measure of the level of strong opposition to cultural diversity, on the basis of a number of surveys conducted over the last 30 years, there are indications that the level is close to 10% of the population, with higher levels within specific demographics. Areas of high immigrant concentration present a complex picture. They are characterised by high levels of identification with Australia, but also lower levels of trust and sense of safety, lower levels of participation and heightened experience of discrimination.

Australians’ Views on Cultural Diversity, Nation and Migration, 2015-16

“…Similarly, 75.1 per cent of respondents agreed that 'having a multicultural population has been good for Australia' (Table 2). These positive findings align with recent research (since 2000) that has found that Australians are generally supportive of cultural diversity (see for example Dunn et al 2004, p. 425;Ang et al 2006;Nelson and Dunn 2013;Markus 2014;Blair 2015 ). This is in stark contrast to the predominance of attitudes that opposed multiculturalism in the 1980s and early 1990s (Betts 2002, pp.30-31).…”

Climigration: How to Plan Climate Migration by Learning from History?

“…Although Canada followed the US suit by restricting Asian immigration with the 1923 Chinese Immigration Act, which forbade Chinese immigration during 1923-1947(Knowles, 2007, nowadays Chinese and South Asians are the largest groups of immigrants. Canada has a broad immigration policy; together with Australia, it is regarded as the most receptive immigration country among western nations (Markus, 2014). Let's hope Canada will continue the same way but on a larger scale, and draft a comprehensive climigration plan to multiply its population in the future, thereby building a new, ethnically diverse, peaceful superpower.…”

Migration as a global phenomenon

“…Finally, of the four major streams, labour immigration is the most amenable to political manipulation and control (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 2014: 133-220). Given this context it is no coincidence that the publics of Australia and Canada -that is, countries with longestablished labour migration recruitment regimes -are especially tolerant of migrants and receptive to new immigration (Markus 2014a).…”