5. How much do you know about the development of Australia’s multicultural policies?
Multiple Choice Quiz
What does the term ‘White Australia’ mean?
A period of Australian history in which official and unofficial policy favoured British immigrants
A movement in the 19th century to make the Australian flag slightly different from the British flag by making its background white
A breed of Australian Siamese cat
A section of the phone book in Australia
The Chinese Immigration Act of 1855 sought to:
Restrict the importation of Chinese goods into Australia
Stop the immigration of Chinese people to Australia
Limit the number of Chinese passengers on a vessel coming to Australia to one for every ten tons
Restrict the number of Australians entering China
The Pacific Island Labourers Act 1884 was passed to:
Allow Pacific Islanders to enter Australia to provide farmers with a cheap workforce
Limit and categorise the number of Pacific Islanders allowed into Australia because they threatened the local workforce, as they worked so cheaply
Forbid Pacific Islanders to own land in Australia
Forbid landowners to employ Pacific Islanders in any occupation
The Dictation Test for prospective immigrants into Australia was administered 805 times in 1902–03 with 46 people passing, and 554 times in 1904–1909 with 6 people passing. After 1909, and until 1958, nobody passed it. Why was this?
Literacy among migrants got progressively worse in the 20th century
The test got harder and harder
It was administered in a language in which the prospective immigrant had no chance of passing
As the 20th century progressed, the test was carried out on dictation machines that were really difficult to use
Why was the Dictation Test applied to prospective immigrants as part of the White Australia policy?
The government wanted to be sure that migrants could spell
Overt discrimination against Asian and some European migrants appeared racist, so the Dictation Test was administered in the name of seeking literate migrants
To ensure that all migrants had at least a basic level of proficiency in English
It was one of many tests applied to prospective migrants, including health, sanity, morality and tone deafness checks
Attitudes to the immigration of people from Southern Europe improved after World War II because:
Experience in the war had broadened people's minds about the type of people they would like to live with
There was an extreme labour shortage in the booming post-war economy
Australia was becoming less racist
Australia had a 'monoculture' and some diversity was sought
The 1958 Migration Act:
Allowed 'distinguished and highly qualified Asians' to migrate to Australia
Provided for the deportation of unsuitable migrants on the basis of criminal offences in Australia
Introduced a simpler system of entry permits and abolished the dictation test
Only allowed entry into Australia of people born in Europe
The Racial Discrimination Act 1975 provides:
A guide to which immigrant applicants are acceptable in Australia
That racial discrimination is punishable by a term in prison
That racial discrimination is unlawful whenever it impairs a person’s enjoyment of his or her human rights and fundamental freedoms
Information on acceptable forms of discrimination
Multiculturalism in present-day Australia can be defined as:
A deliberate policy to actively maintain and support foreign cultures in Australia, to the detriment of the Australian identity
A policy which accepts and respects the right of all Australians to express and share their individual cultural heritage within an overriding commitment to Australia and to the basic structures and values of Australian democracy
A policy that recognises that all Australians, except the original inhabitants, are migrants
Another word for cultural diversity that recognises Australia as one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse populations in the world
The Commonwealth Racial Hatred Act 1995:
Forbids people from complaining about racially offensive or abusive behaviour, unless it is in public
Aims to strike a balance between two valued rights: the right to communicate freely and the right to live free from racial vilification
Lists reasons for hatred between nations
Forbids vilification between countries belonging to the British Commonwealth of Nations
The definition of an asylum seeker is:
Someone who has entered Australia illegally
A person who has left his or her country of origin and has applied for refugee status in another country, and whose application is still pending
The same as a refugee, ie someone who has a well-founded fear of persecution in his or her home country and is unable to return, because of fear of persecution
Someone who wants to be pronounced legally insane so that he can avoid prosecution for a crime
Which of the following is the only Western country that puts its asylum seekers into mandatory detention who arrive in the country without valid documentation?
France
Australia
Great Britain
United States
Which one of these countries does not have a Bill of Rights to enshrine human rights into the law of the country?
New Zealand
Great Britain
United States
Australia
The Migrant Amendment Act 2001 was introduced to:
Make the processing of asylum seekers quicker and more humane than it was before
Prevent abuses to the system of processing asylum seekers
Make it more difficult for asylum seekers to seek asylum in Australia