Jerome: 'Stop racial intolerance'

'It is not the same Australia it was when our first Australians arrived.'

Tim Jerome. Picture: Josh Preston

Letter to the editor by Tim Jerome:

OPEN the door and look outside - we are a multicultural nation, or am I looking out of a different door or window.

We are made up of people from different nations, different colours and different creeds. This has happened democratically. This has been happening since our first Australians arrived in canoes. People have left their old country to now become an Australian.

What right does any person or political party have to say because you look a certain way or have come from a certain nation that you can no longer be one of us.

Political parties that propagate racial intolerance, or racial hatred, are building their political parties because of what is happening economically or outwardly like a person losing their house or farm or business.

They are taking advantage and profiteering from other people's misfortunes.

The financial problem happened because our big business political parties have sold us out. The problem happened because we were too busy looking after our own needs instead of seeing what was happening around us.

It's no good saying it's because of "them", a particular race or nationality that we have this problem. Some people are so racist that they want a white or mainly white nation, or only those from European descent. This is nothing but pure racism. Judging a person by the way they look or don't look is not the answer.

This is so ridiculous considering that our first Australians were dark-skinned.

Democratically, we need to define our nation. It is not the same Australia it was when our first Australians arrived. It is not the same Australia it was when people from British descent settled here. Australia has changed since the first Australians arrived to where we are today.

It's time for us, through multiple referendums and multiple community input, to define ourselves as a nation. This needs to happen sooner rather than later so we lose the "us and them" mentality. Instead it should be "us and we".

It is not a matter of saying we don't want multiculturalism but instead opening the door looking outside, acknowledging we are multicultural. We are a diverse nation. The positive questions we need to be asking is "how are we going to live a life of peace together?" and "how are we going to care and respect one another?"

Tim Jerome,

Traveston