By Mitchell Clarke
#InCardiniaRacismStopsWithMe – That’s the message being distributed throughout the Cardinia shire community, encouraging Australians to take a stand against racism.
With Harmony Week beginning on 15 March, three community walks will be held across the shire to correspond with the ‘Racism. It Stops With Me’ campaign, focusing on the key messages of promoting inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, regardless of cultural or linguistic background.
Racism takes many forms and includes prejudice, discrimination or hatred directed at someone because of their colour, ethnicity or national origin.
Cardinia Shire Council, with support of the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) advisory committee, will host the three walks, each following a different route, to celebrate the many cultures within our diverse shire.
The CALD committee was established in 2017 with the intention of mobilising and coordinating local community resources to improve the wellbeing of the shire’s new and emerging communities.
The Harmony Week walks are considered a “step in the right direction” towards creating a liveable community, according to CALD’s councillor representative Leticia Wilmot.
“I think it’s important to remember that everyone has the right to live and go about their daily lives in a safe and inclusive environment, free from the hate that racism brings,” Cr Wilmot said.
“For me, the reason I want to do these walks is to bring to people’s attention the fact that members of our community are being subjected to racism, and the harm that it is causing to the victim as well as communities they represent.
“One of the committee’s key goals is to encourage people not to turn a blind eye to incidents of racism, to understand the harmful effects and deep impact of racism, and to know how to take a stand against prejudice.”
Across Australia, more than 400 organisations – and thousands of people – have pledged their support behind the ‘Racism. It Stops With Me’ campaign, which is led by the Australian Human Rights Commission.
Cardinia Shire Council mayor Jeff Springfield encouraged community members to get involved and join one of the walks.
“Racism and racial profiling can have serious consequences and has no place in our shire,” Cr Springfield said.
“It works against our goal of building a fair, inclusive community.
“We’re proud of our shire’s rich cultural diversity and are committed to ensuring an inclusive and connected community for everyone.”
The first walk, on Thursday 19 March, will leave Beaconsfield Park at 1pm and will head towards the Cardinia Civic Centre.
The second walk, the following day on Friday 20 March, will see walkers leave the Cardinia Civic Centre at 1pm and walk almost seven kilometres towards the Cardinia Cultural Centre.
The final walk, on Saturday 20 March, will invite participants to meet at Cardinia Life by 1pm before heading towards the Pakenham Show’s outdoor stage at the Living Learning centre.
To register for one of the walks against racism, visit www.cardinia.vic.gov.au/stopracism or contact the council’s safe and inclusive communities team on 1300 787 624.
To report instances of racism with the community, you can report it securely and confidentially to the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission.
