'Too Tall, Too Dark' to be Australian: Racial Perceptions of Post-refugee Africans

Abstract

This article discusses the cultural and linguistic identities of Africans of refugee backgrounds (hereafter post-refugees) and how they are perceived by the wider Australian society. Drawing on oral interview data collected from 15 post-refugee Africans originally from Sudan, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo now living in Victoria, Australia, the article provides empirical evidence to support the argument that the everyday politics of race and fear of the 'non-desired Other' have resulted in the construction of stereotyped perceptions about post-refugee Africans. A common view expressed by the majority of participants is that Australian racial attitudes which were prevalent during the heyday of the White Australia Policy still persist and lie hidden behind widely used policy terminology such as 'social inclusion', 'multiculturalism' and 'migrant integration'. The increase in black African migrants in Australia over the past two decades has led to media and policy debate on blackness and the fear of the non-desired Other, which can be understood in relation to existing international discourses on race, racial ideologies and colour blind racism. The empirical observations of this article concerning the racial experiences of post-refugee Africans confirm the subtle forms of exclusion exercised through integration and assimilationist conceptions of Australian citizenship and national identity.