Is "racism" just one

way or does it flow in both directions?

One of our Senators, a renegade one, has just been successfully taken to court for telling another one to p... off back to Pakistan. It was not polite but was it actually "racist"? 

I have to say here that I have no time for this particular Senator. She now leads the "One Nation" party. Her debut speech in the Senate caused national headlines, perhaps international headlines. It was also accused of being "racist" when she argued that she had as much right to live in this country as anyone else, that it was her country too.  She strongly opposes things like "Welcome to Country" as well.

Is it these things which made her "tweet" appear "racist"? The other Senator found it "offensive" to be told, "If you don't like it here then p... off back to Pakistan".  As I have just said it was not polite but was it actually "racist"? It might be that it could be argued both ways.

We are often told that we are a "racist" society but the research suggests this is not the case. We have a "Race Discrimination" Commissioner in our "Human Rights" body. Any case of discrimination which makes it that far gets a lot of publicity... but are there really that many cases? The current Commissioner is not so overloaded with work that there are demands for a second or third person to do the job as well. If discrimination exists, and it must sometimes, then it is being dealt with at a much more local level. 

We were told that rejecting the proposed Voice to Parliament would show we are racist. We rejected it but did it make us racist? It could be argued the other way. People did not want to do something that might cause some people to feel discriminated against. I voted against it after talking to indigenous people I know and who told me they were voting against it. 

I sometimes hear someone complaining that our society allows certain things they find offensive because they are not part of their imported culture. When I do I wonder why they came here if things were so good in the country they came from. Of course they were not. Life is seen as "better" here. Does that make me racist? I don't tell them to "go back" but there is a tiny handful I feel are trouble makers. 

Yes, it is that tiny handful. It is the l.8% of university students who complain about racism or the one employee in one hundred thousand who complains about racism when they do not get promotion who cause us to be labelled "racist". If we went to India, Japan or Korea, to Zimbabwe or Tanzania would we feel the same way? Is racism really about which group is in charge? Is it about something which is different and makes us feel uncomfortable?

I suppose I just have to be thankful that my friends come in all shapes, sizes and colours and think differently.