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Australian-Asian Sociability, Student Activism, and the University Challenge to White Australia in the 1950s
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-19, 14:32 authored by Katherine Darian-SmithKatherine Darian-Smith, Waghorne, JDuring the 1950s, staff, students and graduates of Australian universities were increasingly critical of the racial restrictions on immigration, and their activism contributed to a broader government and community reassessment of the White Australia Policy. Personal experiences of cross-cultural interactions between Australian students and an increasing number of international students from Asia, including those sponsored by the Australian government's Colombo Plan, underpinned the university challenge to immigration policy. Tertiary curriculum offering new academic interpretations of Asian history and decolonisation also contributed to a growing awareness among university-educated Australians of Asia, and fostered empathy for its peoples. The publications of the Immigration Reform Group extended this critique of White Australia, and were driven by a moral indignation towards a policy that affected individuals personally known to the critics.
History
Publication title
Australian Journal of Politics and HistoryVolume
62Pagination
203-218ISSN
0004-9522Department/School
College Office - College of Arts, Law and EducationPublisher
Blackwell Publ LtdPlace of publication
108 Cowley Rd, Oxford, England, Oxon, Ox4 1JfRights statement
© 2016 The AuthorsRepository Status
- Restricted