About us
Our vision is for an Australia free from racism. We aim to eliminate racist behaviour in Australia through innovative, evidence-based and effective social marketing.
We use these strategies to achieve our mission:
- raising awareness among Australian residents about different cultures, thereby breaking down misconceptions, busting stereotypes, and challenging xenophobia
- increasing empathy among Australian residents towards people from different cultures, thereby lowering people’s biases against people from other cultures
- educating Australian residents about how racism manifests and the effects it has on people subjected to it, thereby increasing personal accountability
- promoting values that underpin cultural diversity such as mutual respect, empathy, insight, compassion, dignity
- empowering Australian residents to embrace their own culture/s without fear of prejudice or prosecution, thereby enabling people to understand the importance of culture
- building positive social norms through the use of popular culture such as advertising and social media
- measuring – and learning from – our work and sharing our evaluation with others
These strategies are based on a framework published in 2009 to reduce race-based discrimination in Australia. The framework is explained in the Building on our Strengths report by Yin Paradies at the University of Melbourne.
How we are we going to do it
We will implement these strategies by creating a social media package to promote the benefits of cultural diversity, reduce the incidence of racism, and address cultural misconceptions in Australia.
We intend to apply a principle by installation artist Jenny Holzer: “USE WHAT IS DOMINANT IN A CULTURE TO CHANGE IT QUICKLY”. That is, we intend to implement ongoing, deliberate application of mass media in a similar way to that used by corporations, government agencies and the like to change the culture of racism in Australia. The tactics used by these bodies has been undeniably powerful.
We will use courageous, provocative and positive messages and images.
We will combine online and traditional educational and campaigning techniques with leading Australian research on racism and social cohesion to deliver accessible, targeted and effective social marketing.
The Building on our Strengths report identified social marketing strategies as being an affective strategy to address racism.
How we are different
Our work is evidence-based. The content of all our programs is based on well-regarded research from universities, think-tanks and other organisations.
We put theory into practice. We don’t stop at cultural diversity research and dialogue; we implement practical programs to achieve our vision for an Australia without racism.
Our work is thoroughly measured. Our processes are evaluated to ensure our work improves from one program to the next. The impacts of our programs are measured through focus groups and surveys. We share the results of our evaluations.
We appeal to mainstream audiences not niche activist groups.
We walk the talk. We intend to account for our carbon emissions, always acknowledge Australia’s traditional owners, and treat all people with respect.
What we have achieved during our first 12 months
In our organisation’s first 12 months we ran a campaign Give Racism The Finger with very positive results.
Read our annual report for a summary of our activities in 2010-11.
How we operate
We are registered as a not-for-profit organisation and our ABN is 74144510556. We have also been endorsed by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) as a charitable institution with tax concession status.
We are not-for-profit because we want to ensure the primary purpose and measure of success of our work is to achieve social change rather than profits, and that our work is independent from the government’s political agenda.
We are completely independent of any political party or religion and do not represent a specific culture or cultural practices.
We are currently seeking seed funding, volunteers, corporate partners and supporters of all kinds. If you're interested in getting involved, please get in contact.
