There has been a lot of discussion regarding the nature of our society, milticultramism, discrimination and immigration. I know, this covers a wide ranging discussion over many areas and I do not hope to discuss the entire field in a short blog entry. What I wish to talk about is our level of tolerance and how this is reflected in our attitudes given world events.
There are more views on these subjects as there are people who hold these views. The topic is wuite divisive but I believe that many people have not really thought through the rationality of their position – and of course the trivializing of the arguments by media and politicians does not help. Not that I blame either of these groups of people. The media wants to sell advertising space and if they can drive up the emotional thermometer then their job is done. Politicians only want your vote so it is in their interest to appeal to the lowest common denominator. No – it is us who are to blame for not raising the level of debate and not demanding that the issues be addressed properly and not to treat us in this shabby manner.
In helping us understand the issues regarding immigration are there historical precedents? Well, yes there are. In the 19th century there was an influx of Chinese immigrants as a result (I believe) of the gold rush. At the time these people were ostracized and isolated. They more or less kept to themselves and had difficulty integrating. Where are their descendants? Many returned of course but many remained and are now contributing to modern society. And then there was the influx of Italians and Greeks post war. I can still remember the criticism that they were taking Australian’s jobs, they refused to speak English, they kept to their own communities. As a child I recall the Italian and Greek areas and the separation of the groups. In reality the fear was greatly overblown and I also remember the relationships that we had with a number of first and second generation Greeks and Italians, only to discover that they were just like us, the same hopes and fears, the same dreams but simply expressed in different cultural terms. They were not so different. And the Jobs? well the injection into our society of a large number of hard working people boosted the economy and strengthened it rather than otherwise.
What of today. There was recently a report of a protest against an Islamic school. This is typical of the attitude of many Australians. Is this type of action reasonable? As a Christian I support the principle of Christian schools, which personally I consider quite reasonable. If I were to live in a country where the population were predominantly Muslim how would I feel if they protested my wanting to open a Christian school? In more general terms, what should the behavioral criteria be for immigrants?
We have laws which have evolved over many years. These laws describe unacceptable behaviour and the punishment for unacceptable behaviour. They describe the constitution and maintenance of institutions such as courts, religious organisations, and schools to name a few. Now the question is should we make demands over and above the minimum requirements of the law? Are there additional rules that we should enforce other than those that apply to the general population. What is it about the recent influx of immigrants that make them different from the previous migrations? Our laws have been sufficient for previous generations and I see no weakness in those laws which make the current situation any different. As long as the rule of law is maintained then they are free to be who they want. That is what the law is for – to regulate unacceptable behaviour – not to change the nature of a person.
The law is not about who you are – it is about what you do and as long as you obey the law you should be free to be who you want to be.