Land and housing as crucibles of racist nationalism: Asian Australians' experiences

Abstract

Nationwide surveys in 2015–16 in Australia collected data on experiences of racism in various spheres of everyday life, including housing. Of 6,001 respondents, 843 were of an Asian birthplace or background, and 638 spoke an Asian language. These Asian Australians had double the rate of experience of racism than had other Australians, in the form of racist mistrust, disrespect, and name‐calling (70% vs 35%). When renting or buying a house, almost six in ten (58%) Asian‐born participants had experienced discrimination to some extent because of their culture or religion. While 81 per cent of non‐Asian Australians report there is no racism in housing, the proportion reporting this among the Asian‐born participants was only 42 per cent. Those born in Australia but with Asian parents have the same exposure to racism, whereas those with only one parent born in Asia had an exposure closer to those with no Asian connection. “Racial” appearance plays a role in the racism experienced in relation to buying or renting housing. Racism in such a context limits Asian Australians' access to space and curtails the making of non‐Anglo place, which leads to the conclusion that land and housing are crucibles of racist nationalism.

Australian urban geographies of housing in the context of the rise of China in the “Asian Century”

“…At the same time, both Dunn et al . (2018) and Rogers et al . () frame their findings with a reminder that a foundational feature of every discussion about Australian housing and urbanism is the theft of land during the colonial invasion.…”

“…In this special section, Dunn et al . (2018) present new data about the experiences of racism among respondents of Asian birthplace backgrounds and those who speak an Asian language. These Asian Australians have experienced twice as many instances of racism than have other Australians.…”

“…Such racism limits opportunities for new, non-Anglo forms of place-making by many Asian Australians. At the same time, both Dunn et al (2018) and Rogers et al (2018) frame their findings with a reminder that a foundational feature of every discussion about Australian housing and urbanism is the theft of land during the colonial invasion. In another contribution to this special section, Liu et al (2018) also address the theme of multicultural encounters in a review of international scholarly literature on the convergence of two movements that have dominated global city living in recent decades: increased global mobility and increased urban density.…”

“I was discriminated against because I was seen as PRC‐Chinese”: The negotiation between ethnicity and nationalism among Taiwanese migrants in Australia

“…One might identify herself as culturally Chinese, but politically categorize herself as PRC‐Chinese or Taiwanese in relation to claims of national belonging (Brown, 2004; Chun, 2017). Because of migrant status, language proficiency, and physical/cultural difference, however, Chinese Australians and Chinese (including Taiwanese) migrants have been frequently targeted and always experience various forms of discrimination, either verbally or physically (Dunn, Blair, Bliuc, & Kamp, 2018; Fitzgerald, 2007; Pung, 2008).…”

Racist attitudes, out‐groups and the Australian experience

“…Among these theorisations of racist attitudes, the existence of out‐groups, those who are believed not to “fit in”, has been characterised by Jayasuriya (2002: 42) as a core component of “new” racism. Muslim Australians, Asian Australians and Aboriginal Australians have long been regarded as “Others” in Australia’s national imaginary (Pedersen & Walker 1997; Mellor 2003; Dunn et al 2007; Moore 2014; Dryzek & Kanra 2014; Dunn et al 2018). To these, Eastern and sub‐Saharan Africans have been added as a more recent immigrant stream (Khan & Pedersen 2010; Map edzahamal & Kwansah‐Aidoo, 2017).…”