The Washington Post reports this morning that incidents have occurred in Perth and Adelaide, along with the continuing problems in the Sydney area. See also the Sydney Morning Herald on recent events. The Sydney Morning Herald has a lead article regarding Prime Minister Howard's reaction, along with a number of other articles. One is a fascinating article on surfer culture in Australia.
I can't help but compare and contrast the Australian situation with the recent riots in France. (This also occurred to The Reaction.) One big difference in Australia is that the majority, white Australians seem to be now the group causing much of the trouble, set-off by a specific event which related to a history of issues with the minority Middle Eastern population. Albion's Seedlings argues that the underlying issue is the lack of assimilation, and talks about the role of military service and World War II in the assimilation of minorities in this country -- this discussion is definitely worth a read.
Comments