Talking about ‘Australian values’ in the Australian parliament : how politicians contest culturalist racism

In the last decade, mainstream political definitions and the language used in debates about cultural integration have shifted in such a way that it has become more difficult to talk explicitly about racism. Since racist attitudes are increasingly disguised under proxies of differences in culture, lifestyle, or values, recognising and contesting racism becomes a complex task. This article uses critical discourse analysis to investigate the Australian Labor Party’s response to Coalition Government rhetoric about the necessity of migrants adopting ‘Australian values’ in proposals for new citizenship laws. Focusing on speeches about the Australian Citizenship Bill 2005 that sought to implement stricter requirements for naturalisation, this article identifies strategies that opposition politicians used to challenge the government’s usage of ‘Australian values’ in a new citizenship regime. Argumentation schemes the speakers used included the framing of migrants as already adhering to ‘Australian values’, pointing out the hypocrisy of a government which does not abide by its own values, and critiquing the content of the government’s ‘Australian values’. Although the speakers depicted immigrants from non-English speaking backgrounds in an overwhelmingly positive light to try to counteract culturally essentialist claims, there was a failure to question the hegemonic discourses of ‘Australian values’ that define certain migrant groups as unwilling to integrate or contribute to Australian society.