The Moveable Feast – Australia and race hate as experienced in the lifetime as an observer
Speech given by Thomas Keneally AO at the 5th Annual Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture
19 October 2019
19 October 2019
I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of this land, the Dharawal people. I would like to recognise Dharawal elders – past, present and future – and to express my on-going commitment to the protection and promotion of their culture, language and lore. Dharawal people cared for and inhabited land from Botany Bay to the Shoalhaven River and Nowra and inland to Camden and I am privileged to be here on their land and near their waters.
Racism can get ugly. Think of the incidents of racist abuse on public transport that frequently attract media coverage.
It's an unpleasant experience to witness racist vitriol or confrontation. It's even worse when you're on the receiving end of it. Those who have copped a racist spray or attack often say it makes them feel like a lesser being.
Not all racism takes such dramatic form. Sometimes it can be silent or subtle. But even relatively mundane acts of racism have an impact on those who experience them.
Where does hatred come from? And how must we respond? These are questions many have been asking during the past week.
Speech given at the Wellness for Law Conference, University of Adelaide Law School
The law can sometimes feel remote from people’s lives. It can cast a shadow over everything that we do, yet for those who are not lawyers it can be hard to understand. The law – and lawyers – can speak a language that isn’t always accessible.
Federal racial hatred legislation and the complaints-handling processes of the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) are currently the subjects of an inquiry by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights. The Committee’s ‘Freedom of speech in Australia’ inquiry, due to report by 28 February 2017, is giving particular attention to sections 18C and 18D of the Racial Discrimination Act.
Speech given at the 2nd Annual Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture, University of Technology Sydney
Next Monday, 31 October, we will mark the 41st anniversary of the Racial Discrimination Act coming into effect.
The Act is Australian society’s official statement against racial discrimination. It has been the foundation of racial equality and the legislative expression of Australian multiculturalism.
Speech given at the Herbert and Valmae Freilich Foundation's Annual Lecture in Bigotry and Intolerance, Australian National University
Speech given at The Festival of Democracy, The University of Sydney
From whence do prophets come? Many of you will know of the 1976 film, Network. In the film’s most famous scene, news anchor Howard Beale launches into an extended tirade.
The idea of the recent Harmony Walk is based on a simple proposition: that people, from all backgrounds, can walk in solidarity. It's a simple proposition, yet a challenging task. Because solidarity requires compassion. Before we can walk with someone, we may first need to walk in their shoes. Doing this can be easy when you share a lot in common. But when you have little in common with someone, stepping into their shoes involves less a step and more a leap; an imaginative leap.
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