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Introductory remarks at Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture 2017

Race Discrimination

Welcome to the Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture 2017. The lecture is an annual event of the Australian Human Rights Commission, providing an opportunity for reflection on the state of race relations.

Tonight’s lecture, the third such lecture, honours the memory of Kep Enderby. Kep Enderby was from 1970-75 the Member for the ACT and the Member for Canberra in the House of Representatives, and would later serve as a judge of the NSW Supreme Court. An advocate for human rights and civil liberty, a respected jurist, Enderby was also in 1975 the Commonwealth Attorney-General. As Attorney-General, Enderby introduced the bill that would become the Racial Discrimination Act.

On 31 October 1975, the Racial Discrimination Act came into effect as law. The Act was Australia’s first Commonwealth human rights and anti-discrimination legislation.

It did not enjoy an easy birth. When then Attorney-General Kep Enderby introduced a bill on racial discrimination, there had been three previous unsuccessful or lapsed bills. But in June 1975 Enderby’s bill would pass.

Today we mark the 42nd birthday of the Racial Discrimination Act. For the past four decades, it has served as our society’s official statement against racial discrimination and the legislative expression of Australian multiculturalism.

The spirit of the Act is one of aspiration and education. Aspiration because it is about creating the conditions for a society of harmony, respect and unity. Education because it is concerned with people resolving their differences and reaching a better understanding of each other.

How to achieve such things was the subject of this year’s Student Prize competition. This is the second year we have run a national essay competition for students, in which we ask students to reflect on the question of racism in Australian society.

Tonight, I’m delighted to announce this year’s winner of our Student Prize. The winner is Kupa Matangira, a year 10 student from Hunter Christian School, in Mayfield, NSW, who answered a question about whether the best way to kill ugliness was with kindness.

Kupa wrote a compelling essay. Her essay stood out in arguing that the key to educating people about racism wasn’t by erasing differences, but rather by understanding differences. As she wrote:

… Many people believe that we should not see colour, but I believe that as a society, it is vital that we do. Seeing colour allows us to love others for who they are on the inside and not what they look like on the outside; it teaches acceptance.

Cultivating acceptance and understanding remains central to the work of countering racism. It is indeed a perennial challenge. When he introduced the Racial Discrimination Bill in 1975, Kep Enderby said that there was an educative role for the law – it was about making ‘people more aware of the evils … of discrimination [and] the hurtful consequences of discrimination’.

The law isn’t just educative, of course – it’s also a declaration. It sets a standard for our race relations. It signals to our society what is acceptable and what is unacceptable.

It remains vital that the Racial Discrimination Act continue to set the standard; that the Act continue to express our society’s rejection of racial discrimination and racial hatred in our public life. All the more so, given the resurgence of far-right elements. The dangers of renewed prejudice and rising intolerance are real. Those of us who care about racial harmony have every reason to be concerned.

This past year has seen further debate about the Racial Discrimination Act. In late 2016, a parliamentary inquiry into the Act and freedom of speech was announced. That inquiry concluded in February this year. In March, a bill was introduced to amend the Act’s provisions on racial vilification. That bill was defeated in the Senate.

One notable voice in the public debate about the Racial Discrimination Act was Dr Jackie Huggins, co-chair of the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples – the representative body of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Jackie is this year’s Kep Enderby Lecturer.

Jackie Huggins AM is a Bidjara and Birri-Gubba Juru woman from Queensland who has worked in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander affairs for over thirty years. She is a celebrated historian and author, and in 2001 was made a Member of the Order of Australia. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, Jackie has played a leading role in reconciliation, literacy, women’s issues and social justice. Jackie holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Queensland and Flinders University (with Honours), a Diploma of Education and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Queensland.

Jackie is a respected leader, a respected advocate – and someone whose voice rings with truth and power. We are proud to have her as our Kep Enderby Memorial Lecturer for 2017.

Dr Tim Soutphommasane, Race Discrimination Commissioner