Leslie Massey
Australia has a sparse population with an average density of 3.6 people per square kilometre. The country has a history of immigration, with 29.8% of its population being born overseas as of 2020. However, Australia does not collect data on race and ethnicity, making it difficult to determine the exact percentage of Black people in the country. Large-scale immigration from Africa is a recent phenomenon, with Europe and Asia traditionally being the largest sources of migration to Australia. In 2021, the number of ancestry responses categorised within Sub-Saharan African ancestral groups as a proportion of the total population was 1.3%. However, this number may not include all Black Australians, as the term Black in Australia is often used to refer to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, who have a long history in the country.
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What You'll Learn
- Australia's population of black people of African descent is small
- African Australians are a diverse group, with varied backgrounds
- Racism and othering are issues faced by black people in Australia
- The term 'Black' in Australia usually refers to Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander people
- Australia does not collect data on race and ethnicity
Australia's population of black people of African descent is small
The 2021 census indicated that Victoria has the largest number of people of African descent (125,505), followed by New South Wales (116,993), Western Australia (75,603), Queensland (74,329), South Australia (22,974), Australian Capital Territory (7502), Tasmania (4004) and the Northern Territory (3288). In 2021, Melbourne (82,189) was home to the largest number of Australia's sub-Saharan Africans, followed by Sydney (60,424). Perth (59,733) came third and was followed by Brisbane (39,353), Adelaide (15,878), Canberra (5516), Hobart (2008) and Darwin (1940).
The African population in Australia is highly diverse and rapidly growing. African Australians come from diverse ethnic, cultural, linguistic, religious, educational, and employment backgrounds. They comprise about 1.7% of Australia's total population, with over 430,000 people identifying as African-born, including White, Asian, and Arabic African-born populations. The 2021 census enumerated a total of 372,151 Australian residents who were born in Sub-Saharan Africa. Of these, 189,207 (50.84%) were migrants from South Africa and 6847 (1.84%) were migrants from Zimbabwe.
African Australians are strongly concentrated in the Australian capital cities. Large-scale immigration from Africa to Australia is a recent phenomenon, with Europe and Asia traditionally being the largest sources of migration to Australia.
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African Australians are a diverse group, with varied backgrounds
African Australians are a diverse group with varied backgrounds. They are Australians descended from peoples of Sub-Saharan Africa, including naturalised Australians who are immigrants from various regions in Sub-Saharan Africa and descendants of such immigrants. While the exact percentage of Black people in Australia is unknown, it is estimated that over 430,000 people identify as African-born, constituting about 1.7% of Australia's total population. This includes White, Asian, and Arabic African-born populations.
Historically, Australia did not have a significant population of African descent until recent times. The country did not have the same interaction with the transatlantic slave trade as North America, and prior to about 30 years ago, there were very few people of Black African descent in the country. However, there have been notable African emigrants who arrived indirectly via the First Fleet and the 19th-century multicultural maritime industry, such as Billy Blue, John Caesar, and Black Jack Anderson. Additionally, following the 1823 Demerara Slave Rebellion in British Guiana, several hundred enslaved Africans who participated in the rebellion were deported to Queensland, Australia.
Today, African Australians come from diverse ethnic, cultural, linguistic, religious, educational, and employment backgrounds. Large-scale immigration from Africa to Australia is a recent phenomenon, with Europe and Asia traditionally being the largest sources of migration to the country. Melbourne, for example, is home to a diverse range of African communities, including Sudanese, Somalian, Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Tanzanian migrants. Perth, on the other hand, has a significant Kenyan, Zambian, and Zimbabwean population.
African Australians face various challenges, including instances of anti-black racism and othering. Black African youth, in particular, have been subjected to negative media narratives and racial profiling, with the label 'African gangs' being used to demonize and criminalize them. Despite these challenges, African Australians have become an integral part of Australian society, contributing to its rich cultural diversity.
In conclusion, African Australians represent a diverse group with varied backgrounds and experiences. While they may face certain societal challenges, they have firmly established themselves as a part of the cultural fabric of Australia, adding to its multicultural landscape.
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Racism and othering are issues faced by black people in Australia
Australia does not collect data on race and ethnicity, making it difficult to determine the exact percentage of Black people in the country. However, it is estimated that there are nearly 380,000 African-Australians, with a significant presence in cities like Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, and Sydney.
While the country has made efforts to address racism, it remains an issue for Black people in Australia, including those of African descent and Indigenous Australians. Racism in Australia is rooted in its history of British colonization and settler colonialism, which has resulted in severe restrictions on the political, social, and economic freedoms of Indigenous peoples, as well as discrimination against other ethnic minority groups.
African Australians face a high degree of racial discrimination, xenophobia, and systemic racism. This is reflected in negative stereotypes, racial profiling, racial slurs, abuse of authority, over-policing, and violence. The 2018 Australian Human Rights Commission report stated that those born in South Sudan, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ethiopia, and those who identified as Indigenous experienced the highest levels of racial discrimination.
Indigenous Australians, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, have a unique experience of racism as the continent's First Peoples. They continue to face discrimination, inequality, and high rates of deaths in custody driven by deep-seated racism in policing and prisons. Additionally, they have been subject to policies such as the "Stolen Generation," which involved the removal of Aboriginal children from their families, and the terra nullius legal concept, which was declared invalid in 1992.
The impact of racism on the mental health of Black Australians, especially children, is a growing concern. They face racist bullying in schools, and the lack of hate crime laws in Australia leaves individuals with the burden of reporting discrimination and seeking justice.
While there have been attempts to address racism through legislation, such as the Racial Discrimination Act (RDA), and public movements like Black Lives Matter, racism and othering remain issues faced by Black people in Australia.
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The term 'Black' in Australia usually refers to Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander people
Australia does not collect data on race and ethnicity, so it is difficult to determine the percentage of Black people in the country. However, it is estimated that there are nearly 380,000 African-Australians, with a notable East African population in Melbourne.
Historically, the term "Black" was applied to the Indigenous Australians, also known as Aborigines, by Europeans. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, being classified as "Black" or "white" in Australia had significant implications for one's employment and social prospects. Aborigines faced various forms of discrimination, including not being allowed to vote and being forced into low-paid or slave-like labor.
In the 1960s, Aboriginal activists like Charlie Perkins drew inspiration from the US Civil Rights Movement, leading to the "Freedom Rides" and the successful "Yes" Referendum vote in 1967 to include Aborigines in the national census. This period marked a shift towards improved human rights for Aboriginal people, with many activists embracing the term "Black" and reclaiming their Indigenous identity with pride.
Today, the term "Black" in Australia typically refers to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people, regardless of their skin pigmentation. This reappropriation of the term with a positive and inclusive meaning has led to its widespread use in mainstream Australian culture, including in media, government, and private sectors. The term Blak is also used interchangeably with "Black" in this context.
While the term "Black" in Australia primarily refers to Indigenous Australians, it is important to note that there is a growing African immigrant population in the country, particularly in cities like Melbourne and Perth. However, due to Australia's lack of historical connection with the African continent, the presence of Black African descendants in the country is a more recent development.
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Australia does not collect data on race and ethnicity
The collection of meaningful race and ethnicity data is essential to achieving the public good and supporting public interests. It is imperative for ensuring proper advocacy and reducing inequities in health and social determinant factors. Race and ethnicity data can help identify and address systemic racism and other forms of discrimination. Without this data, visible minorities may become invisible, leading to distorted allocations of governmental support and the institutionalisation of racism.
The lack of race and ethnicity data in Australia can be a threat to achieving health equity. For example, the COVID-19 death rate for Sub-Saharan African-born Australians was among the lowest, at 3.4 deaths per 100,000 people. However, without race and ethnicity data, it is challenging to determine how much of this low death rate can be attributed to White privilege or other factors.
Australia's cultural diversity has increased due to migration, with half of Australians (48.2%) having at least one parent born overseas. More than a quarter (29.1%) are overseas-born migrants from over 190 different countries, speaking over 400 languages at home. This ranks Australia sixth among OECD countries in terms of permanent migrant intake and second in the proportion of its population born abroad.
While there may not be a historically significant population of Black people in Australia due to a lack of historical connection to the African continent, there are recent African immigrants and a diverse range of cultural groups. Parts of Melbourne, particularly in the west, have a fairly large East African population, including Sudanese, Somalian, Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Tanzanian migrants. Perth also has a significant population from Kenya, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
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Frequently asked questions
Australia does not collect data on race and ethnicity, so it is difficult to give a precise answer. However, in the 2021 census, around 1.3% of ancestry responses were categorised within Sub-Saharan African ancestral groups. This number does not include African immigrants of European descent and their descendants, who are also considered African Australians.
In 2021, the census enumerated a total of 372,151 Australian residents who were born in Sub-Saharan Africa. In the same year, Melbourne was home to the largest number of Australia's sub-Saharan Africans, with 82,189 people.
Large-scale immigration from Africa to Australia is a recent phenomenon, with Europe and Asia traditionally being the largest sources of migration to Australia. Africans have been settling in Australia since before federation in 1901, with notable African emigrants arriving indirectly via the First Fleet and the 19th-century multicultural maritime industry.
Black people in Australia have experienced anti-black racism and othering, with African youth being disproportionately targeted by law enforcement and criminalised by the media.
