As awareness of the persistence of systemic and interpersonal racism has increased, calls to report racism have been made more frequently by police, human right commissions, community organisations and academics. Without questioning the value of speaking up against racism and the good intentions behind these ubiquitous calls, there is a risk that the ‘duty to report’ contributes to shifting the burden of tackling racism on those who face racial injustice, discrimination, marginalisation and prejudice in their everyday lives.
In this presentation Mario Peucker shares insights from three local anti-racism projects from across Melbourne (2019-2023), arguing that (and how) reporting pathways must be connected to support services aligned with the specific and manifold needs of those who experience racism. This can form part of a larger – and urgent – shift in anti-racism that centres voices and agencies of communities without putting the responsibility on them to tackle racism. This event took place on Tuesday 3 April 2023.
About the speaker:
Mario Peucker is a senior research fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities at Victoria University.
He has undertaken qualitative and quantitative research on radical political movements, Muslim community activism and inclusion-exclusion dynamics since 2003, both in Europe and Australia. Mario has also contributed to consultations with various national and international agencies, including the United Nations, the Council of Europe, and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
He has published five books, and numerous reports, book chapters and articles in peer-reviewed journals, such as Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Politics and Religion, Ethnic and Racial Studies and Australian Journal of Political Science.