Racism is a sensitive subject in Australia. There are laws against any form of racial vilification or discrimination with jail terms possible for breaches of some states racial vilification laws. It isn't hard to find someone who will express some form of racist views in a pub in Australia. It is much rarer to find someone who will openly express aggression towards any racial group. Australia is outwardly a multicultural and racially tolerant society.
Some language used for ethnic groups that you may find offensive, may not be considered offensive by the standards of some Australians. Terms such as Yank and Pom, and to a lesser extent Wog are used in casual conversation in the presence of those respective nationalities, often between friends, and as such are not seen as offensive. However, tread carefully before using slang racial descriptors yourself, to avoid the possibility of offence. Some will choose a racial abuse term if involved in an argument, over a more general abusive term.
It is not offensive to use Aussie (Ozzie) to describe Australian people, but it isn't a term Australians generally use to self-identify. They are more likely to apply it to things (Aussie Rules, etc) than to themselves. When the chant of Aussie, Aussie, Aussie - Oi Oi Oi goes up at an international sporting event, some Australians will cringe, and others will join in. Often this depends on their own perceived social standing, or their state of inebriation, or both. In parts of Australia that are racially fractured, Aussie and Australian can both be used as a divisive terms to identify racial heritage. Ensure that you use the terms Aussie and Australian inclusive of Australians of all racial heritage.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Australia
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Australia - updated Apr 2024
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Australia Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
