Lot's Wife Edition 1 2017

“If You’re Australian, Why Aren’t You White?”
edition one
lot’s wife
It’s a question – or words to that affect – any Australian with a skin tone that glistens
rather than burns in the sweltering Aussie heat is bound to get thrown in their direction.
Just like Cady in Mean Girls, some will go mute not knowing how to respond. But this is
not a rerun of Mean Girls – it’s real life. Comments that are ridiculously hilarious when
directed at a white person may be an everyday reality for non-white Australians.
In this sunny place, a dark and disturbing attitude haunts non-white Australians.
Because of the colour of their skin, they’re deprived of the thing that white Australians
have taken for granted for centuries – the privilege of being Australian.
I’m an Australian citizen born to parents who arrived in Australia long before I was born.
My father is a white Australian immigrant from England and my mother is Malaysian
Indian. I often find myself defending my Australian identity by entertaining Mean Girlsesque
questions because I have a skin pigment that does not fit the mould. My father
doesn’t get called an immigrant. However, we both find it interesting how I’m often
mistaken for being an immigrant, an illegal worker or a tourist.
‘Australia’s Got Talent’ contestant, Sukhjit Kaur, laments in her powerful poetry slam
performance, “rocking up for my first job at Coles was like a scene at Border Patrol. We
don’t want no illegal workers here in Australia.” Her similar experience demonstrates that
I am not alone. These ordeals appear to reinforce the message that people like me have not
met the criteria required to be an Australian. We are not white.
The First Australians were not white. They survived oppression, invasion and attempted
genocide at the hands of white settlers. For many, Australia Day is a day off from work to
enjoy lamb chops. For many indigenous Australians, it’s a reminder of the injustices they
have and continue to suffer.
Then there are the newer non-white Australians who pave the way for a more diverse and
progressive image of Australia. They are the ones often left feeling strange in a familiar
land.