When a politician talks about ‘Australian values’, my brown skin crawls
My brown skin has to crawl whenever “Australian values” enters the political conversation. I always thought they meant justice, kindness, and a fair right for everyone. However, when the term becomes politicized, it becomes difficult to define. All this rhetoric turns the mind towards simple lines that we all know from advertisements and movies, coming from somewhere in the background of what we think this country is. As Dennis Denuto said Castle“that’s the vibe of that thing.” But for me, this environment always felt a little out of reach.
I remember when I was in history class in 8th grade and Pauline Hanson gave it to him. maiden speech He said Australia was in danger of being “smothered by Asians”. A class discussion ensued, and for the first time I realized that some of my friends held racist views but did not fully apply them to me. I was in the room but somehow out of the category. It was confusing but also revealing. I had just learned that whatever “Australian values” were, they could either expand to include me or retreat and exclude me, depending on who was talking.
On 14 April, Liberal Party leader Angus Taylor made a statement. transition planIt is all about “Australian values”. The term is being massaged to ensure stricter entry criteria for people from countries whose “values” do not belong to Australia. However, no official criteria have been put forward so far. Statement of Australian ValuesThis leaves a lot of room for interpretation. The coalition’s plan, if enacted, would effectively give them carte blanche when it comes to visa denial criteria.
Angus Taylor tries to hide that his action is simply about values, but Pauline Hanson’s rage makes it clear what’s going on. His anger alienates him from the realm of all things subtle. It’s like he’s saying “This isn’t a knife, this is a knife” because he claims to be OG. So whatever he does, he notices immediately. And that tells me everything I need to know.
I am Sri Lankan Tamil, often read as Indian, and this generalization is exactly what happens when values are politicized: different identities are reduced to a nebulous group and pressure is put on it to assimilate. But there is a difference between assimilation and integration, and it is important. Multiculturalism requires integration. It wants me to take part in Australian life without having to sand away pieces of my heritage. Assimilation requires something else. He wants me to be less myself in order to be delicious. This is what bothers me about the framing of Australian values as a test. I’m starting to wonder if I’m being invited to belong or if I’m being told to be more like the person doing the measuring.
And this anxiety is not just abstract, it is lived. My parents would code-switch while they worked, softening their Sri Lankan accents to fit in with their white workplace. And I will never forget the feeling of that classroom. This made me question where I fit into the Australian landscape. It’s like, “Where are you?” ‘ it seemed to be asked. but I never got a clear answer.
Values, at least those we claim to value: justice, respect, fairness – should not need policing. These need to be experienced, shown and felt. The moment they become a checklist, a condition, or something that can be kept, they begin to change. They stop being shared and start being controlled. And when this happens, a deeper question arises for me: not only who is being asked to prove their worth, but who is doing the judging in the first place?
I’m not the only one reading it that way. Mine isn’t the only brown skin that crawls. Angus Taylor is talking about us, or rather them. And you can feel it even in the political response; The conflict between the “ideal Australia” and the lived Australia. Hanson’s anger, Taylor’s deflection; It’s all about who counts as Australian. This is ridiculous given the changing demographics of our country. But then, that’s the crux of the matter.
It’s ridiculous to talk about race, so let’s talk about values.
Denise Sivasubramaniam is a Sydney-based writer who explores cultural diversity, identity and mental health. He publishes articles on his substack, Notes in between.
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Denise Sivasubramaniam is a Sydney-based writer who explores cultural diversity, identity and mental health. The Substack publishes articles on Notes from the In-Betweeners.
