Assimilation (sep 2, 1945 – mar 12, 1965)
Description:
Assimilation was a policy that forces people to conform to the attitudes, customs and beliefs of the majority of the population, based on the belief that Australia would be best served if all ethnic groups conformed to the 'Australian way of life' because that way of life was superior to any other. The diversity of the Australian population was not well recognised by government. The expectation was that immigrants would assimilate, abandoning their past allegiances and cultural "baggage", and replacing them almost instantaneously by adopting the idealised Australian lifestyle.
Migrants were to become "Australian" as quickly as possible, with limited assistance from the Government. The idea of Australian culture was not seen as problematic. "New Australians", the term which replaced the pejorative "reffo" (refugee) were to speak English, not live in cultural "ghettos" and wherever possible marry into the Australian-born community. This policy paralleled the Government's policy of forced assimilation of Aboriginal people, which included the now notorious practice of removing Aboriginal children from their families and rearing them in white environments.
At the heart of this policy of assimilation was cultural superiority and the fear that European settlers would form enclaves, decline to contribute to the wider community, and threaten Australia's social cohesion. Joining the Good Neighbour Movement, a nation-wide organisation founded in 1949, was the most popular way that Australians offered their time and energy to assist in the effort to assimilate huge numbers of new immigrants into the Australian way of life.
Today, the assimilation policy is largely criticised but still remains as some people's view on immigration in Australia. Although the policy itself was replaced by multiculturalism in 1970s, the fact that it once existed has a lasting effect on immigrants during the period who were forced to abandon their home culture. Immigrant families have permanently assimilated to the Australian way of life, making the Australia we see today.
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Australia After WWII
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