From White Australia to Multiculturalism

The transition from the White Australia Policy to multiculturalism. The impact of the White Australia Policy 1901–48 on Australian demographics and attitudes towards Asia; the gradual deconstruction of the policy (the Colombo Plan, Japanese war brides, Australian citizenship, the visa system and the Migration Act 1958); the leadership of successive governments from Menzies through Whitlam, Fraser, Hawke and Howard; the humanitarian response to Indochinese refugees and Chinese students after Tiananmen Square; and the influence of Blainey, Perkins, Fitzgerald and Hanson on debates over multiculturalism and immigration.