A report has found that the Voice referendum caused increased in hostile levels of racism towards First Nations People.
Authored by the University of Technology Sydney’s Jumbunna Institute and the National Justice Project, the 2023-24 Call It Out report found that one fifth of all complaints contained reference to the failed Voice to Parliament referendum.
It was based on 453 validated reports of racism towards Indigenous people between March 21, 2023, and March 20, 2024.
The report also examined the ways in which racism and discrimination exist in Australia, as well as the impact of the October 2023 referendum – where 60 per cent of Australians voted against the proposed Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
35 per cent of responses highlighted aggressively racist behaviour: physical violence, verbal abuse, hate speech, threats, intimidation, bullying, and property damage.
More than 20 per cent of reports identified government and private institutions or services as the location of incidents.
And more than four in ten of all incidents were witnessed or experienced in traditional or social media.
Guest author of the report, Professor Lindon Coombes, told NITV that the result of the referendum emboldened racist views, with the report highlighting that racist abuse and harmful comments were spread online, in the media and in person.
“By the time the vote came around, there were so many narratives around special powers or privileges for Indigenous people, a lot of people got confused around that.
“I think people felt vindicated, probably holding views that they had held for a long time but did so quietly, and now thought ‘well if that’s what most Australian’s think, it’s ok to say these things out loud now,” Professor Coombes said.
In their complaints, respondents cited derogatory language, threats, hate speech, and even physical violence, both during the campaign and in its aftermath.
The analysis found the most common forms of racism were stereotyping (23%) and discrimination (15%).
The report also described the referendum period as one of Australia's "darker moments," where expressions of racism became more open and socially acceptable.
It also acknowledged the role of mis and disinformation spread about Indigenous Australia from prominent media personalities, as a key driving force for this surge.
“There can be no genuine discussion on the voice referendum without discussing the impact of racism, both throughout the campaign and in its aftermath,” Coombes wrote.
In the report, one respondent told the register: "I was finishing soccer training in the CBD parklands and the coach said, 'alright hurry up time to go before the Aboriginals get us.”
Another said they received a newspaper clipping about the Reparations for the Stolen Generation was placed in their letterbox, with a slue of derogatory and racist phrases written across it.
Professor Coombes told NITV that the repercussions in the fallout of the ‘No’ result would have real implications on First Nations people across the nation.
“We’ve seen already very real impacts on Government policy, very much informed by the outcome of the referendum, we saw in Queensland that the Government terminated the treaty process there.
“Overall it’s had the impact of cooling the support for Indigenous issues across the board,” Professor Coombes said.
He said the report will be a valuable tool in understanding better what drives racism.
