"Imagining a Future Without Racism, Intolerance, Prejudice or Xenophobia" The Australian community action kit on Racism |
Women and Racism
Racism is not just about our skin colour, or our ethnicity it can be influenced by other factors as well. We need to keep in mind that the intersection of issues such as race with gender, sexuality, disability, age, and religious beliefs can result in very specific types of discrimination.
Issues of gender may affect the way in which the problems are perceived and articulated, and what solutions are suggested. The experiences of women and girls are just as important as those of men and boys, and their contributions towards overcoming racism are equally vital.
What you can do:
- Ensure that in every and any action or campaign you undertake to combat racism - whether in organizing a community meeting, writing a letter, approaching your local council, hosting a Youth Forum, or dealing with the media - there is recognition given to the issues of gender and sex discrimination faced by women and girls.
- Encourage the participation of women and girls in all of your actions against racism.
- Participate in any Gender and Racism activities, such as forums, consultations and documentation processes being run by organisations such as the Women's Rights Action Network Australia (WRANA) or the Association of Non English Speaking Women Australia (ANESBWA).
- If you are a women's organisation, or have a large membership comprising women and girls, host a workshop about the connections between racism and sexism, and the resultant problems faced by so many women in our community.
Some good educational resources from the internet are
- World Conference Against Racism website: http://www.unhchr.ch/html/racism/index.htm
- Women's Caucus Against Racism: http://www.cwgl.rutgers.edu/wc/wcmove.htm
- Human Rights Internet: http://www.hri.ca/racism/
- Commission on the Status of Women: http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw
- Amnesty International Australia (Torture of Women): http://www.amnesty.org.au
This kit is supported by the following organisations (in alphabetical order) in April 2001: Amnesty International Australia, Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, Australian Lawyers for Human Rights, Coalition Against Racism WA, Human Rights Council of Australia Inc., Quaker Service Australia, The Religious Society of Friends in Australia (Quakers),Western Australians for Racial Equality, WA Social Justice Commission - Uniting Church in Australia.