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Provocative, witty and informative debates on the hot-button concerns of the day.

Debates on the hot-button concerns of the day, with top experts on both sides of each issue. The audience has the opportunity to ask questions and vote on the motion before and aft

Debates on the hot-button concerns of the day, with top experts on both sides of each issue. The audience has the opportunity to ask questions and vote on the motion before and after the debate.

Intelligence Squared Debate: Racism is Damaging the Australian Dream

12/12/2015 GMT

Racism is Damaging the Australian Dream

BBC World News - Intelligence Squared Debate, Racism is Damaging the Australian Dream

Is Australia really the multicultural safe haven of equal opportunity?

Is Australia really the multicultural safe haven of equal opportunity? Or is racism destroying the Australian dream?

Who wouldn't want to live the Australian dream? Everyone is entitled to the same basic levels of safety, protection and opportunity, no matter their race or religion. Indeed Australian laws protect everybody from racial discrimination, ensuring we all get a 'fair go' in life. But our history and recent events suggest the dream is far from the reality. The Stolen Generations were subjected to atrocities that only ended in the 1970s and continue to manifest today. Tensions between Anglo and Lebanese Australians infamously reached crisis point in the 2005 Cronulla Riots. Then Australia made headlines across India for a spate of "racist", violent attacks against students in Melbourne. And only recently, we've seen an onslaught of racist attitudes seep into sport, that supposedly merit-based and quintessentially Australian pastime.
So is it really the multicultural safe haven of equal opportunity? Or is racism destroying the Australian dream?

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