Racism. It Stops With Me acknowledges Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and pays respect to Elders, past, present and future. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples should be aware that this website may contain images, voices, or names of deceased persons in photographs, film, audio recordings or text.
Addressing employee complaints about discrimination and harassment quickly and fairly is good for business because it can:
Under federal anti-discrimination laws, if an employer wants to argue that the organisation should not be held liable for any discrimination or harassment by one of its employees, the employer will need to demonstrate that the organisation took ‘reasonable precautions and exercised due diligence’ or took ‘all reasonable steps’ to prevent the discrimination or harassment. While the size of the employer is relevant to these considerations, an important factor that is likely to be considered is whether the organisation has an effective complaint handling procedure.
The animation builds on the landmark Wiyi Yani U Thangani Report and project led by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, June Oscar AO. It is a voice for hope and change. By sharing this animation and the stories of First Nations women, we can move towards First Nations gender justice and equality in Australia.
Find out more: https://wiyiyaniuthangani.humanrights.gov.au/
Race Discrimination Commissioner Chin Tan has welcomed national broadcaster SBS’s announcement of a new free-to-air multilingual news channel which will launch in early 2022.
The channel will provide news in 30 languages and also feature two new SBS news programs in Arabic and Mandarin.
Commissioner Tan applauded the announcement which will see communities across Australia getting access to trusted commentary and insight into major international and domestic news stories.
“Australia prides itself on being a diverse country, where equality and opportunity are afforded to all. If we are to live up to these values, all communities should have news and current affairs that is accessible to them,” Commissioner Tan said.
“For a long time, the Commission has advocated for multi-language media, a vital tool for increasing the participation of diverse communities in public life.
“This was a key finding of our Sharing the Stories of Australian Muslims report, alongside greater representation in all areas of the media.”
“I’m so pleased to see one of our national broadcasters respond to this critical need and am sure it will have a positive impact in multicultural communities.”
The Commission has previously identified the need for greater cultural diversity and representation in the media in its 2018 Leading for Change report and reinforced its importance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s important to remember that all of us are enriched by diversity,” Commissioner Tan said.
“This new channel is an important step to increasing media diversity but should be in addition to concerted efforts to increase diversity at other mainstream media organisations across print, TV and radio in the country.”
The Commission will be continuing its work to progress a National Anti-Racism Framework into 2022. A public submissions process is currently open on the Commission’s website and the Commission will release a Consultation Report about the Framework.
Major professional sports organisations including the AFL, Cricket Australia, NRL, Tennis Australia, and some of the nation’s largest stadiums have already endorsed the guidelines, and more are expected to sign on.
The Spectator Racism Guidelines are the result of consultations hosted by the Australian Human Rights Commission with professional sporting codes, clubs, players, venue operators, and anti-racism experts.
Race Discrimination Commissioner Chin Tan said the Commission spearheaded the development of these guidelines in response to numerous incidents of spectator racism over the past year.
“Sport holds a unique place in Australian society – it encapsulates our values of equality and fairness and helps us connect to each other – but unfortunately, racism in sport remains an ongoing issue.
“When racist incidents happen, they can have a long-lasting impact on those affected, and damaging social consequences. There is no place for racism anywhere, and that includes sport.
“We need consistent and strong responses to spectator racism across the sporting codes to send a united message that racism will not be tolerated, and that there will be serious consequences when it occurs,” Commissioner Tan said.
The guidelines identify actions that can be taken consistently across sporting codes in responding to incidents of spectator racism. This includes proactive measures to prevent racism from occurring, and appropriate support for impacted parties when it does occur.
The Commission has produced a suite of resources to implement the guidelines, including templates, policies, and communications materials to make clear that racism will not be tolerated.
The Commission intends the guidelines to be the first stage in an ongoing partnership with signatory codes, clubs, and venues to strengthen their anti-racism work and policies. Commissioner Tan said: “We look forward to working with these signatories further to make their sporting codes, clubs and venues as inclusive as possible.”
The Commission is also working on a wider National Anti-Racism Framework to address racism in all areas of society, due for release in 2022.
The Spectator Racism Guidelines can be viewed and downloaded from the Commission’s website.
This template is one of the supporting resources for the Spectator Racism Guidelines.
Responding to racism
