A migrant to Australia has spoken out about how the country is becoming too ‘woke’ in pandering to every grievance group, and at risk of becoming irreversibly changed from the nation he was drawn to.
A man who gave his first name of Janik appeared in the audience of the ABC’s Q+A on Monday night and said he’d spent 60 per cent of his life in Australia, starting a family, owning a home, and working in a technical job.
‘I’m deeply concerned about the far-left shift in our country,’ he said on the program.
‘With public schools pushing a woke mindset, a surge in immigration of all sorts, wokeness in climate policies with skyrocketing prices.
‘So my question is how long before Australia becomes unrecognisable, from what it has been, the one that attracted me for its fairness and its opportunities based on nothing else than its merits alone?’
Maria Thattil, an author and former Miss Universe Australia, said in response that so-called ‘woke’ values were merely trying to reverse many decades of discrimination.
‘We hide behind the word woke when what we’re talking about is speaking up for communities who need to have their human rights, dignities and freedoms respected,’ Ms Thattil said.
She said diversity quotas were justified because marginalised groups have faced systemic barriers and disadvantages, citing her own experience as a queer woman of Indian heritage.
Janik appeared in the audience of the ABC’s Q+A on Monday night and said he’d spent 60 per cent of his life in Australia, starting a family, owning a home, and contributing to technological advancements in his job
Author Maria Thattil said in response to Janik’s question that whenever ‘woke’ values were mentioned, it was usually in reference to advocacy for marginalised communities such as the LGBTQI+ community
‘We’re talking about fairness and opportunity, if we really did live in such a meritocracy then I think we would have equal representation of women, people of colour, queer folk and people with disability in positions of power and leadership,’ she added.
‘We do need these progressive movements to progress people who have started on the back foot and face significant inequity.’
Lawyer and panel member Nyadol Nyuon came to Australia as a refugee, and said ‘wokeness’ like every social movement was not above criticism.
‘Merit is an important concept. But it is not without bias,’ Ms Nyuon said.
She said one side effect of diversity programs and quotas was that many women and non-white professionals feel regarded as if they were given preferential treatment even if their position was entirely earnt and deserved.
‘Despite the fact I came to this country as a refugee, I’m absolutely lucky I went to school I did a law degree, I did a BA, I did practice I worked hard,’ she said.
‘Yet every time I walk in the room, everybody thinks I’m a diversity ‘thing’.’
Lawyer Nyadol Nyuon says she is treated like her accomplishments are lesser because of ‘anti-woke’ attitudes. Picture: ABC
‘And that is also destructive,’ she said.
It comes after Gina Rinehart tore into Australia’s ‘woke’ education system, claiming children are being ‘taught to be ashamed of our country’.
The mining magnate said that ‘our children and grandchildren are being let down in their schools’, in a video address at the Bush Summit in Bendigo, Victoria, last month.
‘Even for those as young as three in pre-schools, are being taught our police are bad, plastics, essential in hospitals, are bad.
‘They and others in school classes are no longer taught to be proud of our country, quite the opposite.
‘They are taught that it is wrong to say there are two genders, indeed even told off if they say that. They are being taught propaganda rather than facts, and woke causes instead of understanding rationale and logic.’
In June, the Yarraville West Primary School, in Melbourne, made headlines after making its students sing a revised version of ‘Advance Australia Fair’ at assemblies.
While the different version maintains the original musical scorem 1878, the lyrics were changed to emphasise the history of Aboriginal people.
The modifications were made by Indigenous artists for the Dulwich Centre and Seekers singer Judith Durham in 2015.
Several parents have complained about the change saying it has confused their children who have no idea how to sing the official anthem.
