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If the US has been described as a melting pot (but also as a salad bowl, which is more like a mosaic) and Canada has been described as a mosaic, would Australia be more of a mosaic (despite not being historically bicultural/bilingual like Canada) given its overall similarities with Canadian rather than American immigration patterns?
If the US has been described as a melting pot (but also as a salad bowl, which is more like a mosaic) and Canada has been described as a mosaic, would Australia be more of a mosaic (despite not being historically bicultural/bilingual like Canada) given its overall similarities with Canadian rather than American immigration patterns?
Overall, I'd say Australia is more of a melting pot than a mosaic.
The 19th century influx of immigrants from places like Germany and Italian speaking cantons of Switzerland for example, didn't result in "German" or "Swiss" communities emerging. Rather their descendants simply added to the broader Australian culture. Similarly the heritage of Japanese migration to the old pearling towns in the later 1800s isn't seen in the form of a Japanese community, but rather in the mixed race faces you see across the Top End.
Even the post WW II influx of refugees from places like the Baltic states, ethnic Russians (the descendants of "White" Russians who fled the old motherland after the fall of the Czar) who came here following the Chinese revolution, or the Dutch displaced by Indonesia's independence have just melted into the wider population. Some large groups like the Italians or Greeks were identifiable groups for longer, but even that has pretty much evaporated in any meaningful way.
It might be because Australians generally are far more interested in the present and future than they are in the past. It might be because the traditional "old countries" were so far, far away. Regardless, by the time you get to second generation Australians (even first generation in many cases), I just don't see any desire to hold onto heritage or mix and marry within the confines of their ancestor's ethnic groups.
But at the same time, Australia did officially adopt the concept of multiculturalism in its policies in the early 1970s, just after Canada did. And as far as I know, the US has not officially adopted multiculturalism in its policies.
For the most part, yes, Australia is one massive melting pot. Of course there are certain parts of the country where certain ethnicities or ancestries are more prevalent (see the thread regarding rural towns with a foreign heritage for a good guide on this) but culturally there is no difference whatsoever between an Irish Australian, an English Australian, a Scottish Australian, German Australian, a Dutch Australian or a Swiss Australian - maybe with the exception of religion.
The only places that are "mosaics" or "salad bowls" are the areas of the major cities where there are high concentrations of recent immigrants, and this is most noticeable in Western Sydney, although there are ethnic enclaves in most capital cities. These enclaves are much less noticeable than even in the USA, where you will still find strong Irish, Italian and German neighbourhoods in many towns and cities, the residents of whom are third or fourth generation sometimes!
In Australia by the time you get to the second generation the ethnic communities become largely assimilated.
I'd say a bit of both. Australian cities don't seem AS segregated as a lot of US cities, but that's largely a black/white thing, but there are definitely ethnic enclaves. In fact, I didn't realise how UN-assimilated even some of the younger people where in extremely 'ethnic' parts of Sydney and Melbourne like Bankstown in NSW or Springvale in Victoria. Overall, however, most Australians of all ethnicities tend to integrate into the fairly mainstream society pretty quickly, although there are obvious variables. Some cultures integrate more readily than others, and their population also tends to be more spread out. Also, Australia has a lot more recent immigrants, so there's been less time for them to assimilate, and the population is constantly replenished by new immigrants keeping these cultures alive.
So do you guys think Australian cities will not become like European cities with their distinct Arab and African neighborhoods that do not seem to assimilate? I was surprised to see reports of rioting involving Muslims in Sydney last year, though, to be fair this seemed like an isolated event as I didn't hear of any disturbances in Melbourne or elsewhere
So do you guys think Australian cities will not become like European cities with their distinct Arab and African neighborhoods that do not seem to assimilate? I was surprised to see reports of rioting involving Muslims in Sydney last year, though, to be fair this seemed like an isolated event as I didn't hear of any disturbances in Melbourne or elsewhere
Those events in Sydney, as apposed to the overseas content in the video, seem more like a rowdy demonstration than a true riot. And yes, they were an isolated event.
Australia is a very different society to Europe, and I suspect we run our immigration programs in a very different manner. Australia is often criticised for very strongly favouring skilled migration over family reunions, and being pretty strict in ensuring all who claim refugee status do genuinely meet the criteria. But you could argue that its because of that pragmatic stance that the country has avoided most of the bad outcomes seen elsewhere. Australia simply hasn't seen the race rioting that's occurred in places like the UK, France, or Sweden for example.
Australia is often steriotyped as a racist nation due to things like extremely late indigenous rights and many Australians are overly sensitive to any racial issue being highlighted, but denying they exist doesn't fix any problems. Every multicultural country has these issues, don't be so quick to judge Europe!
Australia is often steriotyped as a racist nation due to things like extremely late indigenous rights and many Australians are overly sensitive to any racial issue being highlighted, but denying they exist doesn't fix any problems. Every multicultural country has these issues, don't be so quick to judge Europe!
Good grief, are you actually aware of the scale of violence they've had in the UK and France, even Sweden?
Australia is often steriotyped as a racist nation due to things like extremely late indigenous rights...
And how was the treaty of Treaty of Waitangi any different in intent from the infamous "Indian treaties" of the US? In both case, treaties simply formalised the subjugation of the indigenous populations.
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