THE AGE TODAY...... Petro Georgio slams Migrant Test.

Point 1
"Georgiou comes to the battle well armed. He's the son of migrant parents. As adviser to Malcolm Fraser, he helped craft the then PM's multicultural policy"

COMMENT Is it possible that Mr Georgio is simply arrogantly and selfishly seeking to protect his own political heritage turf ?
He contributed to the now disastrous "multi-cult" -uralism policy and does not want we earthlings to tamper with it. (better take your vallium now Petro, because the shock is coming)

Point 2

"Where, he asks, is the evidence showing who doesn't learn adequate English and why they are not doing so? The Robb paper claims detailed citizenship testing will help social cohesion and integration, implying this isn't happening now, but no evidence is given, Georgiou says."

COMMENT
Mr Georgio, I will GIVE you the evidence. The same paper which published your anti Australian diatribe, also published a story about a Greek Cultural festival in Melbourne, where a 3rd generation Australian woman of Greek ancestry (the correct terminology) was asked how she felt. Her reply:

"I'm so PROUD to be....(wait for this.. after 3 generations) GREEK !"

So, Mr Georgio, there is your evidence (yes, anecdotal but reflective yes ?) of lack of integration, where a person who's parents and grandparents were born here STILL calls herself GREEK !

I'm sorry, but this is not acceptable. It is certainly UN Australian, and I'd call it RACIST IN THE EXTREME.

So, Mr Georgio, the sooner you leave the Coalition and join the Greens or Democrats the better. I'd prefer to see people in the coalition promoting harmony, integration, assimilation and social cohesian rather than a "I'm da best, cos I'm Greek" kind of racism, which you are clearly, in my view promoting.

Mr Georgio shows that a man with an ethnic migrant background in political office can abuse their position to promote ethnic interests over Australian. SHAME.

BD, I thought you'd have a broader perspective than this ol son.

If asked about his heritage would you expect Petro to say 'I'm not proud to be a Greek"

C'mon get a grip bD.

Its like its ok for people to say they are proud of being Anglo but NOT Greek or Italian, or Russian?

My ethnic mates get asked all the time 'so where are you from mate” usually from whitefella Australians. (They being natural born immigration officers and ethno-biologists and all)

And they respond with the same answer “I’m blah blab blah "

Next question "so how long have you been in Australia'?

Answer " I was born here, so were my great grandparents.

It seems that only 'white' Australian (meaning Anglo's) can truly claim to be true blue Australians and have the god given authority to determine who isn't OR is being Australian or UnAustralian. LOL

I reckon you should rethink your post BD, it’s a bit rough and not like you at all.

Yeah Petro the pedestrian parliamentary who is always threatening to walk across the floor doesn't impress me but he's entitled to be proud of his family and where they came from. It doesn't mean he's racist lunatic. (Unlike many posters here in OLO)

`·.. ><((((º>`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><((((º>¸¸.·´¯`·.¸.

Not sure if 'race' is a physical state or a state of mind. People of the third generation still identify themselves same as their original ancestors? Why then did they not go "home" where they belonged?
I have a nephew in law whose parents are Italian born. My nephew is proudly Australian with nothing extra added .
Petro Georgiou is neither one thing nor another. He who has a foot in both camps is in danger of a painful split. [ouch!]
I do not think such a person has a right to be in our Australian government, maybe the Greeks would be glad of him.

Dear Rainer
you should know me by now mate... I am NOT 'proud' to be English/Scottish...... Not even proud to be Aussie, though there are many admirable things about Australia.

Don't you remember that article which received quite a bit of attention, I think Mercurious wrote it.. about 'admiration' and 'pride'.

There are 2 types of 'pride'.. 'arrogance' and 'admiration'.
I don't think there is any reason to be proud in an arrogant sense about our ethnicity or roots. I also feel we are treading on very quicksandy soil when we speak 'proudly' (in the nicest way) about such and such discovery made by 'our' mob... Its just a bees dick away from 'racism' and true 'we are superior'ism :) (excuse my colorful language.)

I prefer that we view all people through the microscope of 'the best well being of all and for all' and to me social harmony is one such characteristic.

I've noticed the stares of 'white australians' who clearly take a dim view of 'White Aussies' being married to 'Asian women'.. I've also seen the dissapproving glances from white women.

Sliding into 'ethno/social groupings' is just about the easiest thing in the world. I've noticed even with my Mrs, that she gravitates more easily toward Asians. Be they Laotian, Viet, Chinese, etc. Its so easy also to slide into 'mutual dependancy/support' social groupings along these lines. Its not a superiority thing, its just the 'line of least resistance'. I should also mention that when a cross cultural couple in our church, where the wife was aboriginal, she also gravitated to that lady. Each time a cross cultural couple arrives in our fellowship, its like two pieces of a jigsaw coming together.. we quickly greet them and get to know them. "Line of least resistance" :) I think also, there is a sense of shared experience.

We 'notice' cross cultural couples immediately they walk in, for obvious reasons. But I can easily forsee a situation which could create social resentment if we obviously gathered with the cross's each week and we became a clique. I totally understand this.

I reckon one of the great things about being an Australian (and this is not unique to Australia, but not necessarily present in every country) is that you can be culturally both Australian and something else. Of course, you can hold dual nationality as well, so you can in fact be a citizen of two countries. And presumably some people who are no longer Australian think of themselves as Australian, say Rupert Murdoch.

I'm proud of my English, Scottish, Irish, Cornish, Italian (I think), Dutch heritage - does that make me a multiple racist?

Graham.... I can understand 'awareness' of ethnic background, but for the life of me I cannot understand 'pride' in ethnicity.

I'd love to know what particular 'thing' you are proud of in your rich ethnic make up ? Perhaps this is one area of life where it is better to put it in the negative "I am not ashamed" to be this or that. Nope..that doesn't sound right either...

When you say your are 'proud' of those ethnic components to 'you' .. be more specific please ? This is my problem. I cannot see anything in different ethnic backgrounds which is substantially different from others apart from cultural.

As I'm often being reminded in this forum (Usually just after I've been called a racist) "There is only one race...the 'human' race" but I don't agree with that.. there are many races, yet we are all human, and equally so.

But equality of human-ness does not give us a licence to substantially alter or manipulate a host culture in terms of that which is of primary benefit to just our own. (when we migrate there)

I just cannot imagine migrating to Italy, and my grandchildren thinking of themselves in any other way than as 'Italians of Australian ancestry'. I also cannot imagine myself trying to maintain a little slice of 'Australia' in my own family or among a few other Aussie families who migrated to the same place.

I've been though the process of adapting to another culture. When I returned from Malaysia I actually THOUGHT in Malay, after just 8 yrs.
Once we learn the cultural equivalents and signals... it become so much easier, feel more relaxed and are more accepted.

I long for the day when all migrants come here to be 'Australians' first, without reference to ethnicity.