Stop Racial Discrimination in Australia

Your petitioners ask/request that the Senate:

consider Senator Gary Humphries, through his reckless, divisive and provocative act, to be a person unfit to hold the office of a Senator in the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia and take appropriate action under the laws relating to the Racial Discrimination Act (1975) and its 1995 amendment the Racial Hatred Act.

Australia is a party to a number of international conventions and declarations which impose obligations in regard to racism and racial discrimination when ratified in Australian law. The Commonwealth Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act (1986) gives effect to several international conventions and declarations such as the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief (1981).

Australian laws make it illegal for people to engage in racist activity or to encourage, incite or permit racist acts to occur and are aimed at protecting individuals who make complaints about racism. It is unlawful to discriminate on the basis of race, colour, nationality, descent, ethnic or ethno-religious background.

By tabling the petition with its expression of racist attitudes, Senator Humphries clearly displays a lack of judgement and highlights his mistaken belief that it is a legal and acceptable form of free speech. In Australia, as internationally, the right to freedom of speech carries with it certain responsibilities and restrictions which protect the rights of others against open hostility and discrimination. Australian law expressly prohibits incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence on the basis of race.

Racism is destructive as it disempowers people by devaluing their identity and destroys community cohesion and creates divisions in society. It is the opposite of the democratic principle of equality and the right of all people to be treated fairly.