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Boyz in the Hood
January 8, 2010 | 12 Comments
UPDATE: Jan. 9, 2010:
An Indian man in Melbourne set on fire by four people while returning home with his wife from a dinner party. (Link)
The Aussie police are all offended ‘cos an Indian cartoonist gave us a peek into their closets.
Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard has reacted angrily to a cartoon published in India that depicts a police officer in a Ku Klux Klan outfit.
The Delhi Mail Today newspaper published the cartoon in response to the murder of Indian student Nitin Garg in Melbourne last weekend.
The cartoon shows a person in a Ku Klux Klan hood wearing a police badge, with a caption that reads: “We are yet to ascertain the nature of the crime”.
The Indian media has suggested the attack may have been racially motivated, but Melbourne police say there is no evidence of that.
No evidence? According to the Syndey Morning Herald:
In the 12 months to June 2007, 1082 attacks on Indians in Victoria were reported to police – an assault rate of 1700 in every 100,000. Victorian Indians are 2 and a half times more likely than non-Indians to be beaten up or knifed.
Why? Furious disagreement prevails. The most contentious theory, the one that has caused such damage to Australian-Indian relations, is that Indian students are targeted by Romper Stomper-style teenage thugs, skinheads looking to reassert control over suburbs newly populated by Sikhs and Hindus; an atavistic and violent response by racists sick of Indians working in every cab, service station and every pub they frequent.
And no, waiting four days to release details of an attack is not strange. Not at all.
Indians account for 1 in 1000 people living in Melbourne, but 1 in 20 attacks.
Referring to the cartoon Victoria Police Association secretary Greg Davies said:
“Cartoons in Australia are normally done by people who are either clever or witty and this one’s neither.”
Gee, you’ve got to be sensitive to things like racism, you know, to “get” the humour, and less busy folding your pointy white hood.
Several Western governments (as well as that of Australia) pointed to the right to free speech in the Danish controversy involving cartoons of Prophet Mohammed. Yes, indeed. Free speech can bite really hard sometimes. Aussie cops are not immune to it.
Indians, who form 19% of the Aussie student population, are staying away:
Applications by Indians from abroad fell 46 percent to 11,183 between July and October 2009 compared with a year earlier, according to data from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship.
It’s hitting the Australian economy where it hurts.
“Teaching international students is Australia’s third- largest source of foreign income, earning the nation A$15.5 billion ($14.3 billion) annually.”
Filed Under: australia, cartoon, India, MUSINGS, racism
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12 Comments
To be honest, haven’t thought much about it. However, I’d love to know what the Indian-Australians (or is it vice-versa?) have to say about this?
Should we surprised at the racism of the progeny of a generation which tried to decimate the aboriginal population by whisking their kids away to convents to ‘save their souls’ from the darkness?
Sigh…seriously tired of the issue – I am born and raised in Australia (thus an Aussie-Indian), lived the better part of my life in Melbourne and I don’t seem to have experienced any of this so-called racism that goes on since I left primary school.
The Indian media seems to have left out the real facts – as usual hyping up the issue with the inevitable effigy-burning and pointing fingers – the location and situation of these attacks – typically indian international students (like most students – local or international) are strapped for cash and thus end up residing in the not-so-pleasant suburbs of Melbourne. Footscray, Dandenong etc are notorious for drug related activity and general crime. Add that with the fact that a lot of indian students dodge the system that only allows them to work 20 hours of week by taking cash for jobs that nobody else will do that results in them working at all odd hours – you have the perfect circumstance for a crime.
It IS disturbing to see Indians students getting attacked but, Melbourne itself is on the rise for crime. Alcohol related crime accounts for most of the attacks reported – but they’re not discriminating whether the person is Indian, Aussie or Chinese. You have said it yourself – Indians make up 1 in 1000 in the population of melbourne – that’s a decent size – statistics would suggest that indians would be part of sample attacked.
My own manager from work was attacked randomly by drunken thugs on his way home from work in the city – and he is Italian and had only happened to walk home rather than taking a taxi that late at night.
All I am saying is that the issue isn’t as ‘black and white’ as it seems (pun intended). An inflammatory cartoon like that isn’t going to help the situtaion at all – both governments are trying to work together to ensure the safety of ALL it’s citizens. E.g on a night out a few weeks ago the police was out in full force patrolling the streets in different locations in the city. It’s happening, but it will take time.
thank you very much for your perspective, silvara. really appreciate it. i don’t think the racism here is about how you “look” as much as how you “sound”. people with a thick accent get identified immediately and perceived as more vulnerable.
- bee
It is a silly cartoon that wouldn’t get nearly as much publicity if the police association hadn’t made a fuss – I live in Melbourne and don’t see a lot of racism but I know it is different from other perspectives. I have worked with international students a few years ago and I could see that they get a dud deal – not just the indians but all of them
Nobody cares…The Indian Govt nor the Aussie Govt. It is of course sad that a particular section of people are attacked. It is just that we have to be extra careful when things like this happen. It is a good idea to stay in groups and stay a little cautious. Maybe it could prevent certain crimes atleast the police can ascertain the nature of the crime.
and as I get up in the morning this is another news: A man of Indian descent was recovering in hospital on Saturday after a group of men set him on fire in the Australian city of Melbourne…and the police claim it not to be a racial motive.
I hope that something is done to put an end to all this, SOON!
yeah right.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/oz-top-cop-guarantees-safety-to-nitin-gargs-killers/564481/
I am of Indian origin and have lived most of my life in Australia. Yes racism exists here, as it does in every other contry in the workd (including India!). I don’t know if the rates of crime against Indian students is disproportionally higher (compared with other people who frequent the same areas, at the same times, in the same sort of occupations), or if it is increasing. Any crime is worrying, no matter who the target is. A couple of things that havent been reported in the media are that a lot of the fights and attacks are a result of an ongoing feud between a group of Lebanese muslim youth and the Indian students (no shrinking violets themselves as you can see by the gangs they organise congregating at the stations, the retaliation fights they stage, etc). The other thing not widely reported is that some of the problems are crimes caused by other Indians – such as the recent fatal stabbing. There are a lot of Indians ready and willing to exploit the students who come over looking for an loophole entry for permanent residency. They set themselves up as migration agents, middle men for labour contractors and then systematically rip off the students. These rip off agents probably have permanent residency or citizenship themselves so are “Australians” commiting crimes against Indians. There is more to the story than meets the eye. It is easy to condem an entire country as being racist or make stupid comments about “racism of the progeny”…glass houses anyone?
true. thanks for your perspective. that’s why we mentioned “aussie cops”, specifically the melbourne police.
While I appreciate your perspective , there a lot of loopholes in your argument. There is a very small percentage of these so called ‘rip off agents’ and to claim that these people could equally be responsible for attacks is wrong. If they are of Indian origin they are going to get called just that – Australians of Indian origin. The attacks would then be called Australians of Indian origin against Indian students. But that’s not the case. While I condemn any kind of violence, I see the need for Indian students to get together and help each other out. They need to get into groups or ‘gangs’ as you call it. They are there legally as students – so why should they live in fear ? They have paid thousands of $$$ to be able to get an education while still remaining alive at the end of it. And as a country India needs to show its support to its citizen all around the world.