Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I just want to add my support to this motion. The contributions from across the chamber today have been incredibly sobering but also incredibly heartening, because a line must be drawn. Enough is enough in relation to the hate speech, as Senator Singh has called it out and named it. Enough is enough when it comes to the race baiting that has been called out. It is time for us in this place, as leaders in our communities, to call it out, stand up and say: the line must be drawn.

We will all have debates about what are the best policies to support a multicultural nation, to protect and embrace the fabulous community we have. They are debates that are not going to go away. We cannot be complacent when it comes to multiculturalism and protecting tolerance, understanding and acceptance in our community. We must always fight against racism and bigotry. The job is never going to be done, but it will never be done if we sit back and say that it's too hard to name it and call it out. So I think it's incredibly sobering today to see so many people from across the chamber standing up and speaking out, including those members of this place who feel it very deeply, who've experienced racism firsthand in this place and outside this place.

My daughter goes to a small primary school in Adelaide. It's a new arrivals school. New migrant children, when they come to Australia, spend the first six to 12 months at this school. When I go into the playground in the afternoons, when the school bell rings, to pick her up, it's a fabulous demonstration of multicultural Australia. There are kids from all parts of the world, and children are so good at tolerance and respect. I have great faith that this country is in very good hands with the next generation. Children, when it comes to understanding, embracing difference and having compassion and tolerance, are often much better than adults. We have a responsibility in this place as political leaders to match that—to promote and protect what a fabulous multicultural society we are, and to condemn and call out racism and hatred whether we see it on the streets, in our media or in our chambers of parliament. If our children can be tolerant, understanding and blind to difference, then we too must match that.

Often when we're in this place, there are children from various schools around the country sitting up here and watching. I hope any of the kids who were here yesterday watching Senator Anning's speech walked away knowing that it was wrong. We must set a better standard. When a member of this chamber or the other place denigrates an entire group in our community—our history, our values as a nation—they must be called out and they must be condemned. I support this motion, and I also support us strongly condemning Senator Anning for his words. I don't believe he deserves to be in this place.