Sam Lim (Tangney, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Today is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. It is a great honour and privilege to serve in this House as a proud Malaysian-born Australian. We are a diverse government, representing the beautiful patchwork fabric of Australia's multicultural society. We have come a long way, but there are still people who experience discrimination for the colour of their skin and where they come from. Before I got elected, I went doorknocking every day for 10 months. The first few months were so hard. It wasn't because I was working full time as a police officer and doorknocking 30 hours a week, but because of how some people treated me when they opened their door. Some people shooed me off like an insect. Some people called me horrible names. Some ran after me, chasing me off their property. Others told me to go back to China, which is silly, because I was born in Malaysia. Though their words may have very been silly, they still burned me; it cut deep. So today I remind you to please treat your words with careful consideration. Your words have an impact, and you have a responsibility to choose them wisely. I invite you to perhaps have a conversation with someone who looks different to you or is from a different part of the world. Who knows, you may learn something new. You may realise that we have more similarities than we do differences.

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