We have launched a new suite of factsheets, based on the original guide, breaking down five of the most persistent myths and misconceptions about racism:  

1. The misconception that racism is only about individual actions and beliefs   
2. The myth of meritocracy   
3. The misconception of not “seeing” race   
4. The myth that “racism is a thing of the past”   
5. Misconceptions about anti-racism   

These resources consist of individual factsheets that unpack each of these myths and misconceptions and expand on the Myths & Misconceptions self-reflection and education guide published last year. While the original guide was intended to deepen understandings of race, racism and anti-racism in Australia, the new factsheets build on this foundation. The factsheets explore how the myths came about, and how they continue to influence our everyday lives, presented in a concise and accessible format.  

These resources have been designed to strengthen our understanding of racism and how it operates on a systemic level. Importantly, they also provide practical ways to challenge racism and enact change.

You can download the fact sheets through the links below: 

• Fact Sheet 1 
• Fact Sheet 2 
• Fact Sheet 3 
• Fact Sheet 4 
• Fact Sheet 5 

You can also download A3 poster versions of the fact sheets as well! These posters are perfect for a wide range of settings, including workplaces, libraries, schools, doctors’ offices, community centres, and many more. Wherever you display them, they’ll help spark important conversations that help to promote anti-racism. 

• A3 Poster Fact Sheet 1
• A3 Poster Fact Sheet 2
• A3 Poster Fact Sheet 3
• A3 Poster Fact Sheet 4
• A3 Poster Fact Sheet 5

Allies and Friends is an educational series designed to normalise cultural diversity and the concept of allyship in early childhood education. 

This series uses play-based learning to highlight children's voices, inviting viewers to explore new concepts with them and reflect on their own place in a diverse world.

In this series, a group of children come together to form friendships and collaborate on projects. Guided by Jenae Tien and other educators, they engage in cross-cultural communication and develop critical thinking skills. 

This toolkit for early education helps young children learn how to activate cultural allyship and encourages discussions around five key concepts:

• Allyship
• Diversity
• Love (relating to self, others, and skin tones)
• Communication
• Community

By learning about the experiences of others and recognising the importance of diversity, children can develop empathy and compassion for those around them.

The goal is for each episode to provide provocations for children to share their experiences and perspectives, learn from the unique insights of their peers, and for educators to consider practical ways to empower young children with a strong sense of belonging, while informing bigger picture social impact and change. 

INTERRUPTING STEREOTYPES

Bias and stereotypes begin to form at a very young age. Research indicates that "children as young as 3 months are aware of racial differences, and by preschool age, they make choices based on race about whom to play with and how" (Katz & Kofkin 1997; Van Ausdale & Feagin 2001; Hirschfeld 2008; Quintana & McKown 2008).

This highlights the need to educate children about diversity and inclusion from an early age to foster a more cohesive and anti racist society.

Allies and Friends is grounded in the belief that allyship is a powerful force for good that can transform communities and bring people closer together.

This toolkit encourages you to empower children in your care to engage in community storytelling, cross-cultural communication, and inclusive play with both new and old friends. By doing so, you promote empathy, understanding, and compassion.

You can access all five episodes of Allies and Friends and the toolkit through the ABC Kids website.

The fact sheets and lesson plan are designed to support individual and organisational conversations about the importance of keeping the focus of IDERD on ending all forms of racial discrimination and injustice.

The schools’ fact sheet and lesson plan have been written for students in Years 9 and 10. This content has been aligned to outcomes in the Australian Curriculum.

The general and translated factsheets have been written for an older audience and are suitable for workplaces, community centres and other institutions.

The fact sheets describe how ‘Harmony Week’ is an example of the way language can be used to sweep the harms of racism under the rug. This doesn’t help people experiencing racism. Instead, it reinforces inequality and maintains the status quo.

In contrast, having open discussions about racism demonstrates a commitment to tackling racism when it occurs and preventing it in the future. Discussing racism honestly and openly helps develop more advanced racial awareness and provides the space to plan and act for change.

The IDERD fact sheet has also been translated into a range of different languages.

Downloads

Fact sheet – General

How 'harmony' hides structural and systemic racism in PDF

(159.14 KB) 

How 'harmony' hides structural and systemic racism in Word

 (152.02 KB)

Fact sheet – For schools

How ‘harmony’ hides systemic racism in PDF

(166.36 KB) 

How ‘harmony’ hides systemic racism in Word

 (152.58 KB)

Lesson Plan – For Years 9 and 10

Lesson Plan for IDERD: Years 9 - 10 in PDF

(177.25 KB) 

Lesson Plan for IDERD: Years 9 - 10 in Word

 (155.38 KB)

Translations

While information on the Australian Human Rights Commission's website is mainly presented in English, the IDERD Fact sheet resource has been translated into a range of different languages:

Arabic

• Arabic in PDF (311.57 KB)
• Arabic in Word (129.8 KB)

Burmese

• Burmese in PDF (290.11 KB)

• Burmese in Word (181.5 KB)

   

Dari

• Dari in PDF (322.32 KB)

• Dari in Word (161 KB)

   

Simplified Chinese

• Simplified Chinese in PDF (300.93 KB)
• Simplified Chinese in Word (159.28 KB)

Traditional Chinese

• Traditional Chinese in PDF (313.15 KB)

• Traditional Chinese in Word (150.75 KB)

   

Vietnamese

• Vietnamese in PDF (160.85 KB)
• Vietnamese in Word (110.43 KB)

The Sydney Jewish Museum has developed a new resource focused on antisemitism and its history, created by their team. The resource is an important project aimed at addressing a pressing issue – the rise of hatred against Jewish people in Australia and across the globe.

For this reason, the Sydney Jewish Museum has created an online platform that contains a thorough, research-based exploration of the history of antisemitism, how it manifests in contemporary society, and practical strategies to combat it.

The resource aims to equip and empower you to notice, question, and stand up to hate when you see or hear it.

You can access the resource and learn more about key terms and concepts related to antisemitism via the Sydney Jewish Museum's website. 

Background

Phase I

In March 2021, the Commission called for a National Anti-Racism Framework and released a Concept Paper outlining guiding principles, outcomes, and strategies.

The Commission then undertook consultations with peak and community organisations, service providers, government departments and agencies, experts, and community members. 100 consultations were undertaken with approximately 300 organisations. The Commission partnered with community peaks and organisations as well as government departments to conduct 10 community consultations across the nation. The Commission also called for public submissions between October 2021 and February 2022 and received 164 submissions. The Commission released its National Anti-Racism Framework Scoping Report in December 2022. 

Phase II 

Since then, in addition to the below community consultations, the Commission has undertaken and commissioned additional research to progress the findings from the initial scoping phase including in the areas of data collection, anti-Asian racism and health. 

This year extensive community consultations about a National Anti-Racism Framework were undertaken. This included consultations with over 496 First Nations people across Australia, from diverse populations including those with metropolitan, rural and remote backgrounds, varying ages, genders and socio-economic backgrounds, and sectoral representation. These involved one-on-one interviews and focus groups, both in place and virtual, an online survey and group submissions, ensuring a wide range of voices were heard. 

Consultations with negatively racialised communities were also conducted, led by 18 organisations and comprised of 44 community consultations with over 860 participants. The consultations were conducted across all states and territories including remote, regional, and metropolitan areas, with a majority conducted face to face and others online. They included intersectional focus areas of LGBTQIA+ people; women; people with disabilities; refugees and asylum seekers; older people; young people (18-25 years); people and communities of faith; new and emerging communities; and communities with prominent caste systems.  

Shift from Interpersonal Racism to Systemic Racism 

The findings from this initial scoping process were shared in the National Anti-Racism Framework Scoping Report in December 2022. The Scoping Report indicated strong support from participants across the board for a Framework as an overarching and coherent approach to anti-racism. Across the board, participants affirmed that First Nations self-determination, sovereignty and truth-telling should be central to the Framework. The following themes and sectors were also identified as areas of focus:

• Data collection
• Education and Public Awareness
• Cultural Safety
• Legal protections and Justice
• Health
• Media

• Read and download the National Anti-Racism Framework
• Read and download a summary of the National Anti-Racism Framework
• Read the media release 

Related reading

The following reports have contributed to the National Anti-Racism Framework:

• Mapping government programs and policies relevant to anti-racism
• Race Reporting Handbook
• An Anti-Racism Framework: The Perspectives of Multicultural Australia
• Anti-Asian Racism Research Project
• An Anti-Racism Framework: Voices of First Nations Peoples

Acknowledgments 

The Commission recognises the ongoing strength and leadership of Australia’s First Peoples in leading anti-racism efforts since colonisation.

The Commission acknowledges the vast emotional and intellectual labour of the community, particularly those with lived experiences of racism, who shared their vision for a National Anti-Racism Framework that takes a transformative approach to addressing racism in Australia.

Image design copyright Bree Buttenshaw for Saltwater People (2024).

Report methodology 

Between November 2023 and May 2024, FECCA engaged 18 organisations across Australia, using an intersectional lens and intentionally prioritising groups that are most likely to experience racism together with other forms of discrimination.  

In total, 44 consultation sessions took place across all states and territories, covering more than 860 participants. An online survey was also conducted, with 411 valid responses. 

Key findings 

Among the key findings was that, despite the diversity of people’s backgrounds – including location, age, disability, sexuality, faith and cultural background – racism was widespread throughout the country and entrenched in society.  

Racism, the report found, is often being experienced at the same time as another form of discrimination such as disability or sex discrimination, and is taking place in people’s schools, workplaces, public spaces, and during interactions with health services or law enforcement.   

Governments and the media were also found to be culpable in further marginalising people through a culture of silence, which either ignores or minimises incidents of racism or stokes divisions through sensationalist rhetoric.  

The experiences shared by participants have reinforced findings from previous studies and brought to the forefront the solutions that those with lived experience of racism propose to build a society where racism is actively combated. 

Recommendations 

In total, 11 recommendations (7 main, 4 supplementary) were made to help build a society where racism is actively combated. These include: 

• The Australian Government must lead the way to change and commit to a whole-of-society, anti-racism agenda, such as through a national anti-racism framework.  
• Combating First Nations racism must be at the forefront of reform.  
• Schools must educate on racism, including First Nations experiences of settler colonisation, and take a strengths-based approach to racial diversity including via curriculum. 
• Public and private institutions, including in education, employment, healthcare, and justice, must have policies in place to address racism in all its forms. This includes incorporating preventative and redress mechanisms, reviewing all current policies and procedures for accessing opportunities and services, and introducing mandatory anti-racism training.  
• Media should employ more professionals from culturally diverse backgrounds that lead news and help to shape anti-racist narratives in Australia. 

Downloads

• Full report: 'An Anti-Racism Framework: Experiences and Perspectives of Multicultural Australia' [PDF 452 KB]

Image design copyright Bree Buttenshaw for Saltwater People (2024).

Journalists play a critical role in the way people are racialised. That’s why the Australian Human Rights Commission, in partnership with Media Diversity Australia, has produced the Race Reporting Handbook to help overcome misrepresentation and stereotyping.

From reporting on First Nations people reinforcing stereotypes to the cultural burden placed on people with lived experience of racism in newsrooms, the handbook reveals the inequity in our current media landscape and includes tips for newsrooms to overcome it.

Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman said: “The media has the power to decide who tells stories, whose stories are told, and how they are told. If you are white, you are often centred in nearly every aspect of the media and rarely, if ever, need to be concerned about the way in which the media represents your race.”

"Responsible reporting which is built on racial literacy is essential for creating any anti-racist society. It’s time to shift narratives from sensationalist headlines and move to editorial decision-making that are reflective of stories that showcase strengths rather than diminish negatively racialised communities.

“The handbook contains principles and checklists for anti-racist journalistic and editorial practices, including recruitment for greater diversity in media workplaces. Inclusive storytelling will better amplify underrepresented voices for more robust reporting,” Commissioner Sivaraman said. 

Media Diversity CEO Mariam Veiszadeh highlighted the need for the handbook at a critical juncture in the Australian media landscape.

“If a person were of an Anglo background, would you, for example, reference their race? This is a crucial question to consider.

“Enhancing the racial literacy of a sector that informs and shapes the health of our democracy can result in more nuanced and inclusive reporting, greater audience reach, and a stronger, more resilient democracy.

The Race Reporting Handbook addresses how to combat structural and systemic racism in Australia's media landscape. It emphasises an anti-racist approach to reporting to assist media professionals in building stronger community connections and adopting more inclusive editorial policies.

The ultimate goal of a cultural temperature check is the creation of a culturally safe and racially equitable workplace environment through practical, meaningful, and active anti-racism strategies.

A cultural temperature check should identify any structural barriers, risks, or issues in relation to the current promotion and implementation of cultural diversity and anti-racism in your workplace. As well as this, it should seek to foster self-reflection by engaging with staff at all levels on the impacts of power and privilege. 

The Australian Human Rights Commission’s (AHRC’s) Workplace Cultural Diversity Tool is a great first step to assessing the current level of cultural inclusivity within your organisation. This tool can be used in tandem with this guide (available for download below) to conduct a comprehensive check of your organisation. These resources are directly geared towards creating positive change and embedding anti-racism in the workplace.

The Workplace Cultural Diversity Tool is a free self-assessment tool based on international best practice. The Tool is designed to support employers, managers and human resources personnel as they work to promote cultural diversity and engage in anti-racism in the workplace.

You can access an offline-version of the Tool's assessment questions below. We recommend completing the online version of the Tool, to receive analysed results, recommended resources and track your progress over time.

The Tool is reviewed and updated regularly to align with good practice, the questions within this resource are therefore subject to change. The questions in this resource are valid as of July 2023.

You can find the Tool here: https://itstopswithme.humanrights.gov.au/workplace-cultural-diversity-tool.