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Post by moralhazard on Apr 15, 2009 20:42:15 GMT -5
Hey fart, So what's with excluding Sydney? Damn, I'm mildly offended!  "I'd just like to be able to study in an atmosphere where I wouldn't be ignored by everyone just because of my ethnic looks or even worse" - is this happening to you in Nebraska? My prediction - No way would you be assaulted by people about your looks at uni. But because you look asian, then they might make the assumption that you are an international student (not to worry, it's happened to me plenty of times). In your case, they'll be correct although they guessed the wrong country. Then you speak in your sweet American accent, person B asks more questions and badda bing you've got a nice conversation going. The worse that will happen are your classmates referring to you as 'that Nebraskan chick' coz they can't remember your name. And also, if you participate in class, then students are going to look your way simply to see the face behind the accent. When ya get here, let me now if this happens to you and I'll start up an 'international students forecasting' agency. |
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Post by Subuatai on Apr 15, 2009 22:39:09 GMT -5
Well, I lived here all my life, though my experience is only in two states, Western Australia and New South Wales. Now the Aussies aren't your typical neo-nazi racists, hell they don't go around starting fights etc, there are enough Lebanese and Asian gangs here to pound them if they go too far, hell the Lebs even went as far as killing after the Cronulla riots. If you are a normal legit person, studying, working, etc - you'll encounter racialism and end up dealing with Anglo ignorance. But if you have links to underground - the Aussies will be too frightened to do anything, as they mostly come from rich, spoiled backgrounds in comparison to the minorities. When it comes to the street-level, Aussies are always pushed aside. Asians and Lebs tend to defend their 'territories' rather fiercely, Aussies turning out to be second-class on the streets. So yeah, that's why Aussie racism is very much subtle. I wouldn't say the majority are racists, but racialists - people who emphasize alot on your race. In other words - subtle racists, who talk behind your back, and never to your face unless they outnumber you 10 to 1. Blame that on the current social dread of minorities at the moment. Just how it is, so it's nothing too serious. Their racism is all talk. As for Sydney, ethnics ended up forming racial terrorities, on the street, people just go 'hey hows it going' and portray a friendly face to each other. So you won't spot it at first glance, as the racism is more underground. There is also xenophobia aside from racism, many Aussies despise America as a racist country, heh and both call each other hypocrites - which is true. EAs are accepted for the most part, but we still go through some racial issues as usual in a modern country. Unfortunately unlike other ethnic minorities, EAs aren't very united and do not hold racial territories or the 'dread' factor when dealing with Aussies, so you'll probably encounter more of it then others. So to conclude everything, you are EA, American, and an international student (they hate those too)... Haha, nice combination, have 'fun' in Australia heh Just don't worry if the Aussies get to you, all they do is talk. But if you wish to build a strong social circle here in Australia, look for non-Anglo Australians, they tend to be much more friendly. Aussies call other Europeans Wogs, so the Asians, Wogs, Lebs; great crowd. Much more multi-culturally accepting. |
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Fiona
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Post by Fiona on Apr 16, 2009 0:23:48 GMT -5
Erm at the unis I'm familiar with-they seem to be very multicultural... And everyone has been pretty nice to me. I've experienced less racism at uni than high school. (And my high school was VERY multicultural). I agree with pretty much moral hazard said. I think you'll be noted more for your American-ness rather than your Eurasian-ness. Also if you end up coming over here-tell us about it! I've always wanted to know what it was like to study overseas! |
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Kush
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Post by Kush on Apr 16, 2009 14:51:04 GMT -5
There is something I find faintly depressing about immigrants discriminating against other immigrants.
When I went to Sydney (Manly) there were a surprising amount of Asian people: maybe between a quarter and a fifth of people were Asian. Two schoolgirls where talking loudly in Vietnamese on one bus I was in and the rest of the passengers seemed to act as if it was nothing unusual.
I'm not sure how different it is in the rest of Australia. On the other hand, I was a tourist so I only saw everything skin deep and things are often more complicated than they appear.
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Post by milkman's baby on Apr 16, 2009 15:59:55 GMT -5
There is something I find faintly depressing about immigrants discriminating against other immigrants.  Who was this directed towards? Did I give you the impression that I'm hostile towards other immigrants? I hope not.  |
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Post by milkman's baby on Apr 16, 2009 16:01:44 GMT -5
Hey fart, So what's with excluding Sydney? Damn, I'm mildly offended! "I'd just like to be able to study in an atmosphere where I wouldn't be ignored by everyone just because of my ethnic looks or even worse" - is this happening to you in Nebraska? lol No not so much. And I'd love to go Sydney as well. It's just the program I'm looking at is at the University of Melbourne. |
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Kush
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Post by Kush on Apr 16, 2009 16:45:58 GMT -5
There is something I find faintly depressing about immigrants discriminating against other immigrants. Who was this directed towards? Did I give you the impression that I'm hostile towards other immigrants? I hope not. Haha, no not at all  Directed towards any racist white Australians/Kiwis who happen to be reading this, as they themselves are descended from immigrants (and quite a large amount are immigrants themselves). |
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Post by moralhazard on Apr 17, 2009 5:48:52 GMT -5
"And I'd love to go Sydney as well. It's just the program I'mlooking at is at the University of Melbourne."
Melbourne, Schmelbourne. You know you want to see how crap the roads in Sydney are, check out a $3 capsicum in Woolworths, experience getting stuck behind a slow walker on a narrow footpath in the city...AND notice how the weather doesn't reflect the fact that it is Autumn.
Nah, climate change and rising food prices aside - this is an okay city. (Have I managed to change your mind?)
Having typed that, I wouldn't mind relocating to Melbourne either!
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Post by moralhazard on Apr 17, 2009 5:52:51 GMT -5
There is something I find faintly depressing about immigrants discriminating against other immigrants. Two schoolgirls where talking loudly in Vietnamese on one bus I was in and the rest of the passengers seemed to act as if it was nothing unusual. I'm not sure how different it is in the rest of Australia. On the other hand, I was a tourist so I only saw everything skin deep and things are often more complicated than they appear. Hey, I'm a bit of a first class village idiot - could you please explain that a little more? |
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Kush
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Post by Kush on Apr 17, 2009 6:37:04 GMT -5
Hey, I'm a bit of a first class village idiot - could you please explain that a little more? Okay no problem, it was fairly vague. All white people living in Australia/New Zealand are (or parents were at some stage) immigrants as the indigenous people are the darker skinned Aboriginies & Maoris. Therefore, it is ironic for them to discriminate against other immigrants when they themselves are immigrants. So it appeared that people there were accepting and used to foreign languages being spoken as nobody was staring. Plus the girls didn't seem nervous and just acted as if this was a perfectly normal thing to do. As I've only been to Manly which appeared to be quite Asian-friendly, I can't pass judgement on other places in Australia or New Zealand. I was there for only two weeks and didn't get to know anyone on a personal level so obviously I didn't seeas much as someone who has lived there for years. |
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Post by Subuatai on Apr 17, 2009 7:01:58 GMT -5
Ask a non-Sydney-dwelling Anglo-Aussie what he thinks of Sydney, he'll answer "F--- Sydney it's full of N--s" or "F--- Sydney, it's like New York, all Americanised". Sorry about using authentic language, but just ask, you'll get this. That's just a fact the Anglo community isn't prepared to face. Heh, I remember this Indian bloke back at Sydney was complaining about this racist Anglo dude. "Go back to India"-based insults mainly. I just told him, "Next time he says that just reply, 'Go back to England you convict dog'". Poor Indian dude got fined for assault charges - which angered him even more as he was only defending himself in the ensuring brawl. Now he's even more p-ssed.  |
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Post by moralhazard on Apr 17, 2009 7:07:50 GMT -5
^ Okay, I get ya on point 1, 3 and 4.
Hehe, and you only had to decipher every sentence for me ;D Thanks!
Point 2 about the Vietnamese schoolgirls, well I agree with you that most people are just used to different cultures and languages by now. But you mentioned something interesting, about how "nobody was staring. Plus the girls didn't seem nervous and just acted as if this was a perfectly normal thing to do", so does this mean that if you were in England then speaking in another language in public is a Number 1 no-no?
I think that the other bus folk didn't mind because they did not know what the girls were talking about. It would have been harder to ignore if the girls were talking in English with loud voices about school-girl crushes and who's the skankiest skank. Coz then you are really trying to ignore it, but end up catching yourself listening in on episode 1 of 'It's a teens life'.
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Post by milkman's baby on Apr 17, 2009 10:04:45 GMT -5
I agree that hating immigrants is pretty low-class, but I bet these anglo australians would argue that it's the whole 1st generation immigrant thing that they don't like. i mean i know some americans feel superior because their ancestors were here for hundreds of years, as opposed to a saudi arabian immigrant who speaks english with a thick accent. that's why i noted earlier it could be xenophobia rather than racism. a lot of people confuse the two. i live in an area that starting to get more russian immigrants, and i've noticed increasing frustration amongst american locals because of language differences. they're starting to dislike russians, because of the language and cultural barriers. obviously not because of their race, as they look the same as the 85% whites here. but then again, it could be different for asians and others because we do look different from whites. so yeah, i guess i can understand how xenophobia and racism can be confused.
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Kush
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Post by Kush on Apr 17, 2009 11:15:48 GMT -5
^ Okay, I get ya on point 1, 3 and 4. Hehe, and you only had to decipher every sentence for me ;D Thanks! No problem Depends whereabouts really. If I started speaking Cantonese on a bus to someone, I would definitely get stares and maybe even racist comments depending on how many chavs/thugs are around (and there is usually at least two). Hell, a Pakistani friend of mind got called a "dirty paki" by some chav on a bus for no apparant reason. It's not a "No.1 public no-no", people aren't going to all jump on you and beat your brains out - it would just be strange, and some people don't like strange, if you know what I mean. However, I do live in a very white place (although I could imagine it's worse in places like Yorkshire). It's much better in cities and more diverse places where there are alot of South Asians and Eastern Europeans around - so people are much more open minded. |
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Post by Subuatai on Apr 18, 2009 7:09:58 GMT -5
^ Yeah, that's a sad thing about Australia. Countries who don't boast of their multiculturalism have communities speaking 4-5 languages in the same country, while Australia boasts of multiculturalism yet discriminates on anyone who doesn't speak English.
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Who was this directed towards? Did I give you the impression that I'm hostile towards other immigrants? I hope not. 
