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My granddad was a fourth generation white Australian who worked with sheep. I used to tell the story that he was a small town racist who disliked Blacks, Catholics and Jews. The punch line was that his daughter married a Fijian, his son married a Jew and my dad married a Catholic.
As Anzac Day approaches, Australian flags adorn our streets. To many, this display of nationalism is inoffensive and appears even as a sign of cohesion. But it may also be a worrying facet of the growing appeal found in exclusionary identity politics.
In 2009, the Federal Government embarked on consultations with Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory about the Northern Territory Emergency Response, commonly referred to as the Intervention. This is what they said.
The Haitians need help, but are not a failed people. Two hundred years ago, Haiti became a beacon of light and freedom for all oppressed people. Colonialism was defeated, and the myth of white supremacy dealt a mortal blow. For this, the little country would pay.
Australia's decision to reduce its intake of the endangered southern bluefin tuna has outraged the industry. The global fishing industry is unsustainable, and fishing is second only to climate change as the greatest environmental threat to marine ecosystems.
Mining states often view native title as bureaucratic red tape that slows down the industry. But the Native Title Act has never given Aboriginal people a right of veto. The High Court recently set an unfortunate precedent that further hinders the ability of traditional owner groups to negotiate.
At the height of Willam Hackett's republican involvements, the Jesuit provincial offered him a choice of silence or appointment to Australia. Through a combination of personal memoir and public history, Brenda Niall unravels the riddles of Hackett's life.
A recent editorial in The Australian regretted that Australian conservatives have conceded the intellectual high ground to Labor. In fact, the Liberal Party and its supporters have arguably been far more astute than the ALP in nurturing academics and research fellows sympathetic to the 'liberal conservative' cause.
It is hard to imagine any solution to the discontent in Xinjiang without a general change in the political culture of China. That seems a distant prospect indeed. For Australia's part, a soft and friendly voice may do more than condemnation or contention.
Benny Morris' earlier concern with the Palestinian national narrative has given way to an overarching concern with the promotion of the Jewishness of Israel. This comes at the expense of Palestinian national aspirations.
The hype surrounding the AFL's annual Anzac Day match has reached near-sacred heights. Asking what it means to have football played on Anzac Day is as risky as wondering why the Digger is the most powerful expression of Australian identity.
St Patrick holds the Irish in a powerful emotional thrall. Parades all over the world honour the man who brought Christianity to Ireland. This week in Northern Ireland, saintly ghosts of the past have been called upon to bless murder.