Senators Mehreen Faruqi, Senator Lidia Thorpe and Senator Fatima Payman have written to President Sue Lines calling for urgent action to address racism in the Senate and ensure Parliament is a safe workplace for women of colour.
In a joint letter, the Senators outline a pattern of racism, both overt and insidious, within the Senate chamber. They warn that standing orders and procedural rules are increasingly being used to silence those who call out racism, with other Senators often drawing a false equivalence between those calling out racism and racist behaviour itself.
The letter documents a series of incidents, including personal insults directed at the Senators, racist comments going unchecked in debates, and instances where Senators attempting to call out racism were reprimanded or silenced.
Such behaviour would not be tolerated in any other workplace. Failing to address racism within Parliament undermines its integrity and discourages women of colour from participating in public life.
Senators Faruqi, Thorpe and Payman are calling on the President of the Senate to take immediate steps to address racism in the Chamber and in Parliament, including reviewing the way standing orders are applied and introducing mandatory anti-racism and cultural safety training for all parliamentarians.
Greens Deputy Leader and Spokesperson for Anti-Racism, Senator Mehreen Faruqi:
“Racism does not exist only at neo-Nazi rallies and One Nation press conferences. It is alive and well in the Senate, and women of colour who stand up to the government are subjected to it even in these halls of power.
“When we call out racism in Parliament, the system turns on those who call it out instead of those who perpetrate it. The Senate Chamber is becoming an increasingly hostile environment, where women of colour like us are marginalised, belittled and silenced. No other workplace would tolerate such toxic and exclusionary behaviour.
“The message we are hearing from the Chamber and those presiding over it is that we should be seen and not heard, that we cannot represent our communities authentically, and that we are a problem and a threat to the establishment.
“We are told to sit down and be quiet. We are told we are out of order and out of line. We are told we are breaking rules that others openly flout.
“I understand that there is a need for robust debate in parliament, and I participate in that robust debate, but I will never accept that racism has to be part of my job. We must draw the line at racism.
“We look forward to the President’s response to our letter, and call on her to take action to end the racism that has been allowed to fester. We want this to be a moment of reckoning for the Senate. This is our moment to build an anti-racist country and it can start with Parliament.”