Australia

Australia has always been and will be a racist nation and the Cronulla riots prove this as a fact. Racism is a form of discrimination based on race, especially the belief that one race is superior to another. Racism may be expressed individually and consciously, through explicit thoughts, feelings, or acts, or socially and unconsciously, through institutions that promote inequality between races. Australians has seen themselves as a benign nation that is comfortable with diversity and accepting of difference under the idea that everyone should get "a fair go". The image of a mob chanting racist slogans and then roaming the streets to beat up any men and women of "middle-eastern" appearance has shattered this benign image. Australia has always claimed to be multicultural but the majority of Australians who have been victimised of racism know this is not true and the Cronulla riots have proven it evidently to some of us who refuse to believe it is not true and the entire world that racism in Australia is a fact, it's here, its been here and its not going away. It has been said that one's past makes one's future and by looking at Australia's past we can see that it was a chauvinistic, bigoted and prejudice nation. Although many people argue that Cronulla was just a minority of Australians who were being racist, but they do not realise how much racism there is here and to experience it you need to put yourself in the shoes of that particular.

Australia has a history of racial tension and violence. There were many incidents that occurred in the past, which has contributed to prove this true, such as the discrimination of Chinese minors, the white Australia policy, terra nullius and the dictation test. The principle behind the settlement of NSW and subsequent colonies was 'Terra Nullius', which that the existing inhabitants, perhaps some 500,000 Aborigines and Torres Strait Islander people held no title to the land, This remained the legal principle of settlement until the late 1990's. What's more, when the discovery of gold in the 1850's brought people together from many different backgrounds this led Europeans to incidents of violence, robbery and discrimination towards the Chinese miners. The Lambing Flat riots quite similer to Cronulla riots, were a series of violent anti-Chinese demonstrations that took place in NSW. The European miners attacked the Chinese quarter, killed several people and wounded many others. Other attacks followed and the Chinese miners were eventually forced to abandon the fields. The lambing flat riots provoked the white Australia policy, which was move to stop all non white immigration to Australia, it was an aim was to keep Australia a homogenetic society. Later In the early 1960's a language or dictation test was introduced. Migrants were made to undergo a language test, which if they failed, disqualified them from entering the country. The language in it was usually very difficult. Applicants who failed the test were not given a second chance but the migrants who passed were given another test until they eventually failed and refused entry. Australia's history shows that this country has always been a racist nation, which goes on to demonstrate that the Cronulla riots were race riots.

The Cronulla riots were race riots against Lebanese Australians and Ð''wogs', people who appear to look Middle Eastern. On December 11, 2005 approximately 5000 white Australians gathered in an ad-hoc protest, these people wore t-shirts and chanted racist slogans in a Sydney beach suburb. These slogans included "wog-free zone", "Lebs outs", "Lebs go home", and "ethnic cleansing unit". The word Ð''Lebs' is a contraction of Lebanese: first generations Australians from Lebanon were the main target of the white Australians. There were many outburst of violence where at least one innocent Muslim woman had her headscarf pulled off as she ran away from an attacker whilst people cheered her on, and as well as multiple attacks on young guiltless Lebanese Australian men who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Dozens of thugs stormed the local train station and viciously attacked two Lebanese men. Ambulance officers trying to help the injured were also attacked, and beer bottles thrown at their vehicles. Police vehicles were targeted as well. Teenagers reportedly roamed the streets surrounding North Cronulla Beach, coordinating their attacks with walkie-talkies. As well as the Lebanese at least one Jewish Australian boy and one Greek Australian girl were also attacked because they looked Ð''Middle Eastern'. Cronulla riot violence was another indicator of the extreme social tensions that exist within Australian society. In Australia each individual person represents his or her country, this can go by the way they act, talk or even dress. The riots where 5000 racist people gathered acting exactly the same clearly