The last few weeks have been intense. Not because one part of me wants to bury my head in the ground like an ostrich and carry on with life, but for the dichotomy of the other that feels the need to raise my voice. The “other”- amply displayed in my social feed, carrying fascist, sexist, and racist banners. Also, an equal number of “others” on the edge, scared, fearful, and hurt.
Othering and the likes
The symbolic and semantic differentiation of “us” and “them” is not new in the annals of history. It has divided nations and people, marking the “other” to be annihilated, supported in part by notions of superiority and playing on triggers of fear and loss aversion. Conflict theory tells us that the fundamental premise of conflict arises from limited resources or the perceived lack of resources. As psychologist Clin Curle describes, “othering involves zeroing in on a difference and using that difference to dismantle a sense of similarity or connectedness between people…setting the stage for discrimination or persecution by reducing empathy and preventing genuine dialogue.
This demarcation leads communities to believe that outsiders threaten their access to social status, jobs, or cultural security, reinforcing anxiety and even legitimizing exclusionary practices such as the August 31st rally that swept across major cities in Australia.
The Weaponisation of Immigration
Coloured immigration has been a lightning rod in political debate, but in recent years, far-right movements have intensified their efforts to turn it into a wedge issue. At the heart of this strategy is racism-often disguised in coded language about culture, security, and way of life, and the ideology of white supremacy, which seeks to maintain social, economic, and political dominance by portraying non-white migration as a threat.
Australia is in the middle of a housing crisis, groceries cost a small fortune, and half the country seems to be either battling floods or bushfires. And yet somehow, white supremacist and their political cousins want to blame immigrants. Be that as it may, the rhetoric is hard to ignore, and while Government action has been quick to condone the actions and violence of August 31st, much more needs to be done to address this at the systemic level.
Ordinary Australians, among whom 48% have at least one parent born overseas, are meanwhile caught in the middle- some outrightly choosing to ignore the rally that happened, to others sympathising, perhaps even justifying the rally over some delicious dim sums at yam-cha!
And then there is the multicultural metaverse, all of whom have been painted with the same brush, the dominant shade being brown. The brown people, too, have been hierarchised here with the needle squarely pointing at the Indian community. Last in, first out. The playbook never changes.
“They are taking our houses!”
The statement does ring better than “they are eating the dogs,” but hey, migrants aren’t the ones hoarding investment properties; they are also paying taxes. In 2021, about 20.5% of all permanent migrants were paying more than 30% of their household income towards mortgage repayment. Work harder!
If you want someone to blame for the housing shortage, look up the ladder, not across the street. The real culprits are dodgy planning laws, land banking developers, and politicians.
If addressing the housing shortage is the goal, scrutiny should be directed towards systemic issues- flawed planning laws, land hoarding by developers, and policymakers prioritising their interests over genuine reforms. Oh, and by the way, only 31% of skilled migrants arriving over the past five years own homes today, down from 41% in 2011. So no, recent migrants are not buying up houses.
Migrants themselves are not the architectural enemy of housing, especially as many are still renters or under mortgage pressure. Scapegoating migrants will not address the pressing issues of urban planning and infrastructure development. A lot more needs to be done and fast!
Anti-Migration and Targeted Hate
In a recent interview, politician Jacinta Price alluded to the anti-migration rally as a March for Australia rally. She also blamed the Labour government for importing voters to keep power. While specifically targeting the Indian community as part of the Labour government’s vote-stacking strategy, her words exhibit a range of issues, most disturbing among them being the undermining of the values, skills, and hard work of the community in their contribution to building this great country.
Classifying migrants as a “vote bank” is both reductive and politically motivated. It detracts from the real challenges of housing shortages, infrastructure strain, and cultural integration, oversimplifying the narrative along narrow partisan lines. The dangerous insinuation that newer demographics are threats takes away all opportunities for integration and diversity.
By reframing the anti-immigration march of August 31st as March for Australia, Price does a grave injustice to the basic ethos of this country and its first owners and guardians. This rally was not a patriotic rally but a peddling of racist and extremist rhetoric. Neo-Nazis walked the street with ordinary Australians, hijacking the narrative and peddling their racist agenda. The danger is not just the anger of a few protesters. It lies in how regular Australians-frustrated with their own struggles, can be swayed into believing migrants are their enemy.
When the cost-of-living pressures meet simplistic blame games, racism finds fertile ground.
The Irony of “Too Many Migrants”
What’s most striking is the contradiction. Australia depends on migration to fill the workforce gaps. In almost every sector, from healthcare to education, to tech firms to construction, migrants keep the country running. The same people being shouted down at rallies are the ones keeping the health system afloat, writing the code behind new technologies, and even building the homes that are said to be in short supply.
For Indian migrants in particular, the story is clear: we came here to contribute, and we do. Skilled Indian Australians are among the fastest-growing professional groups in the country. We pay taxes, create jobs, and raise families, and we call Australia home.
A Convenient Scapegoat
Segmenting migrant workers based on the colour of their skin, their accent, and their religion is racism. It happened to the Jews in Germany 100 years ago. It is what is happening to the Rohingyas in Mynamar, the Uyghurs in China, and the Palestinians in Gaza.
The 31st August anti-immigration rally showed us how these scripts are played out. Take isolated incidents of crime, economic strain or community tension to generalise about the entire population. These narratives are designed not to reflect reality but to stoke fear- a fear that the racial majority is losing its power, identity or way of life.
Yes, Australia faces real challenges. Housing has never been more unaffordable. Interest rates and rents are squeezing ordinary families. Childcares and daycares cost an arm and a leg. Floods and climate events are testing infrastructure and resilience. These are genuine problems- but they cannot be pinned on migrants. To suggest otherwise is not just misleading but dangerous.
We need to step back and ask: who benefits when migrants are scapegoated? Not renters who still can't find affordable housing. Not families struggling with bills. And certainly not the broader Australian society, which risks tearing itself apart over myths rather than solutions.
Real leadership means addressing the structural issues: building more homes, investing in services, and planning for climate resilience. It means telling Australians the truth- that migrants are not the problem but often a part of the solution.
It means cracking down on extremist groups, organised crime syndicates mushrooming across this country. Because today they are on the streets, tomorrow they will be in our living room, preying on our children’s minds, spewing hate and destruction, and destroying this beautiful country.
A Balanced Way Forward
Migration brings enormous benefits if done in a planned manner. Migration policies have to be balanced with infrastructure development and planning for real housing. Investments in regional settlements to ease the pressure of major cities must be high on the agenda.
What also needs to be amply tackled in the “replacement” fear, sometimes called the Great Replacement theory, of the far-right group. The suggestion that immigrants, particularly from non-European backgrounds, are being deliberately “imported” to outnumber or erase white populations has gained traction because it exploits the anxieties about change, economic uncertainty, and cultural diversity.
This is not accidental, nor can be brushed away. Political actors who wish to consolidate power often use immigration as a proxy battle to rally support. By painting migrants as a common enemy, they unite segments of the electorate who might otherwise be divided by class or ideology.
Racism becomes a tool of distraction: while communities are told to fear migrants, systemic inequalities that hurt all working people remain unchallenged.
Countering this requires dismantling the myth that white supremacy feeds upon. That means highlighting facts: migrants are not taking more than they give, multicultural societies thrive, and diversity is not dilution but enrichment. Most importantly, it means telling different stories – stories of migrants as neighbours, workers, carers, and community builders.
The attempts to use race as a weapon against immigration are not new, but it is urgent to confront them now. White supremacy, globally anti-woman and cisgender, is rapidly gaining traction through digital platforms, testing the resilience of democratic societies. The question is whether we allow fear and prejudice to dictate policy or whether we insist on a vision of belonging and justice that includes everyone.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy, position, or views of any organisation, employer or affiliated body. Any errors or omissions are the responsibility of the author.
Add comment
Comments