Living Cultural Diversity in Regional Australia

315 Pages·2013·5 MB·English

Liv in g Cu lt u r a l
Div er s it y in R eg io n a l
Au s t r a lia : An
Acco u n t o f t he To w n
o f Gr iffit h

N . L. McCubbe n

Do cto r o f Ph ilo so phy

2 0 0 7

Un ive rs ity o f W e s te rn Sydn e y
Acknowledgements

Many people have made this study possible. One person who has been pivotal is my
Aunt and friend Pat McCubben. Her invitation for me to live with her while I was in
Griffith not only furthered my ability to carry out fieldwork; it has enriched my life
in many ways.

The journey that has brought me to this point began in 1998 when I started an
undergraduate arts degree in tourism at the University of Western Sydney which was
being co-ordinated by Dr Russell Staiff. Since then, Russell has inspired,
encouraged and supported me in a range of ways, most recently as my principal PhD
Supervisor. I would not have achieved what I have without him.

The people most able to empathise with one are others who are also on the journey.
For their unfailing support and friendship I would like to thank Lillian Barry,
Jasmine Foxlee, Catherine Holmes, Ryan Kift, Kel Knox, Sid Parissi, Brad Purcell,
Bob Ryan and Shane Smithers, collectively, the Backpassage Philosophical Society.

Partners and family always put up with a lot. Thanks must go to John for his support
and for never doubting my ability to do this no matter how much I tried to convince
him otherwise. My family and friends, at times, must have felt like they were
dealing with a complete alien—love and thanks for putting up with me to all of you.

Without the co-operation and support of those people in Griffith who were involved,
this study would not have emerged in the way that it has. I would like to thank
everyone involved for their generosity—and I’m sorry I can’t name you all—
especially Janine Rolles, Diane Erika, Margaret King, Rev. Matthew Trounce,
Shirley Norris, and the Griffith Local Aboriginal Land Council. There were of
course many other individuals who assisted me either formally or informally with the
study and I thank them too, in particular my anonymous interviewees who so kindly
gave me their time. I hope they approve of the result. Several people in Griffith
became friends and I would like to acknowledge in particular Frank and Mary Ann
Signor, Polly Wilkinson and Joe Amato. A special thankyou must also go to Lucy
and Peter Taylor for their interest and support, as well as to Eric Junkers.

The tourism group at UWS is comprised of a fantastic bunch of academics that
continually provided me with support, advice and encouragement. I would like to
acknowledge you all, including Associate Professor Robyn Bushell, Dr Wendy
Holland and Ian Knowd. Further institutional support came from the Centre for
Cultural Research at UWS in the form of both supervision and by way of providing
an active, vibrant, scholarly environment. In particular I owe a debt of gratitude to
my co-supervisors Professor Bob Hodge and Professor Kay Anderson. I feel
privileged to have had the support of academics of their calibre. For most of my
candidature I was principally located in what was then the School Environment and
Agriculture and I would like to thank former Head of School, Associate Professor
Rob Mulley and the administrative staff of the school for their support.
Statement of Authentication

The work presented in this thesis is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, original
except as acknowledged in the text. I hereby declare that I have not submitted this
material, either in full or in part, for a degree at this or any other institution.

……………………………………
Table of Contents

List of Figures
List of Plates
Abbreviations
Abstract

Introduction.............................................................................................................1
Multicultural Griffith
Reading Griffith
Culture and Identity
Representation, Discourse, Ethnography
On Theorising ‘Whiteness’
The Research Material
Describing and Ascribing Cultural and Ethnic Identity
Positioning Myself
Australian Multiculturalism: Critical Questions
Analysing Multiculturalism
Multiculturalism and Indigenous Australia
Similar Studies in Regional Australia
Multicultural Griffith: Sites of Analysis

Chapter One: Australian Multiculturalism: The Role of the State ……………..32
About Multiculturalism
Immigration to Australia and Griffith
Policies for Managing Cultural Diversity
Scholarly Responses
Cultural Diversity and Australian National Identity
Multiculturalism Today
Meeting the Challenges and Maximising the Benefits: The Federal
Response
Local Manifestations: Griffith Multicultural Community Council
The Community Relations Commission: Promoting Multiculturalism
Griffith City Council: Cultural Diversity at the Local Scale
Conclusions

Chapter Two: Multicultural Griffith for the Tourist: A Cosmopolitan City…….64
Griffith and Tourism
Reading Griffith
Cosmopolitanism and the Discourse of Enrichment: Constructing
Griffith as Multicultural
Ethnicity and Recognition
Wiradjuri People: Part of the Cultural Diversity of Griffith?
Constructing the Past
Conclusions

Chapter Three: Of Pioneers and Settlers: Constructing the Past………………..91
Museums and Heritage Sites: Cultural Representations
Griffith Pioneer Park Museum
i
Background and Context of the Museum
Telling the Story of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area
‘Griffith through the Decades’: The Sharam Hall Exhibition
Inclusive Histories
The Italian Museum
Conclusions

Chapter Four: Inscribing the Landscape: Soldiers, Settlers and Recent
Arrivals………………………………………………………………………...128
Landscape Inscriptions
Griffith’s Landscape
War and the Supreme Sacrifice
The Agricultural Endeavour: Mythologising Pioneers and Settlers
A Monument to Cultural Diversity: The Lifecycle Project
Conclusions

Chapter Five: Celebrating Diversity: The Multicultural Festival……………...166
Multicultural Festivals: Performance and Celebration
‘La Festa: Faces of Australia’
Griffith’s Easter Festival: An Historical Sketch
Celebrating Multiculturalism Griffith-style: La Festa 2004
Performing Community: Griffith’s Multicultural Mosaic
Conclusions

Chapter Six: Living Cultural Diversity………………………………………..195
Multicultural Griffith: ‘Quite an Exceptional Town’
The Managerial Gaze: ‘Anglo Saxons’ and ‘Italians’
Influence and Power
Spatial Managers and Governmental Belonging
Centres and Margins: Positioning Italians
Constructing Others: ‘The Recent Arrivals’
Asserting Sikh Identity
Multicultural Griffith: ‘Forging Friendships’

Chapter Seven: Multiculturalism and Indigeneity in Griffith………………….228
Intersecting Discursive Formations: Indigenous and Multicultural
Discursive Constructions, Representational Practices
Music, Dance and Storytelling: Incorporating Aboriginal Culture
Griffith City Council: A Revealing Portrait
Local ‘Knowledge’: Other Discursive Constructions
‘I’ve got nothing against Aboriginals but…’
Media Representations
White Blindfold Histories
Multiculturalism: A ‘House Built on Sand’?

Conclusion: The Cultural World(s) of Griffith...................................................254

References Cited……………………………………………………………….262
Appendices
ii
List of Figures

Figure 1: Wiradjuri country showing Griffith (AIATSIS, 1999)

List of Plates

Plate 1: View of the town of Griffith from Scenic Hill 7
Plate 2: View of the town of Griffith from Scenic Hill 7
Plate 3: Farmland on the edge of the town 8
Plate 4: The main irigation canal runing through Grifith 8
Plate 5: Grifith Visitors Centre 69
Plate 6: Part of the GVC interpretive display 70
Plate 7: GVC panel 'Multiculturalism' 75
Plate 8: GVC panel 'Indigenous People' 82
Plate 9: Grifith Pioner Park Museum 96
Plate 10: Griffith Pioneer Park Museum 97
Plate 11: Forging a wheel at Action Day 2004 101
Plate 12: Making soap at Action Day 2004 101
Plate 13: Part of the Pioneer Park Museum collection 102
Plate 14: 'Taylor's Store' 103
Plate 15: A 'scarred tree’ 108
Plate 16: The first part of 'Griffith Through the Decades' 110
Plate 17: Part of 'Griffith Through the Decades' 111
Plate 18: 'Early Settlers' and 'Recent Arrivals' in 'Griffith Through the Decades' 115
Plate 19: Griffith Italian Museum and Cultural Centre 118
Plate 20: Part of the Italian Museum display 119
Plate 21 Banna Avenue, Griffith’s main street 133
Plate 22: Griffith War Memorial 137
Plate 23: The Fairey Firefly, a 'memorial to all airmen' 139
Plate 24: The Memorial Hall 140
Plate 25: Griffith Italian Prisoners of War Memorial 144
Plate 26: Griffith Soldier Settlers Memorial 147
Plate 27: Memorial to Pioneer Women 153
Plate 28: The 'pioneer/soldier settler' contribution to Lifecycle 157
Plate 29: The 'recent arrivals' contribution to Lifecycle 158
Plate 30: The 'Indigenous/Wiradjuri’ contribution to Lifecycle 159
Plate 31: The 'Italian' contribution to Lifecycle 159
Plate 32: La Festa 2004: the lantern parade 177
Plate 33: La Festa 2004: the crowd gathers 178
Plate 34: 'Community performers' at La Festa 184
Plate 35: The audience at La Festa 184
Plate 36: The 'Indian lady', the ‘piece de resistance’ of the lantern parade 188
Plate 37: A flower symbolising Cook Islander culture 188
Plate 38: One of the food stalls at La Festa 189

*All photographs were taken by the author.
iii
Abbreviations

ABS Australian Bureau of Statistics
CRC Community Relations Commission For a multicultural NSW
CWA Country Women’s Association
DIMIA Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs
DIMA Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs
GCC Griffith City Council
GGHS Griffith Genealogical and Historical Society
GMCC Griffith Multicultural Community Council
GRAC Griffith Regional Advisory Council
GSSM Griffith Soldier Settlers Memorial
GWM Griffith War Memorial
GVC Griffith Visitors Centre
IM Griffith Italian Museum and Cultural Centre
LGA Local Government Area
MIA Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area
MIS Murrumbidgee Irrigation Scheme
NMAC National Multicultural Advisory Council
NPWS New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service
NSW New South Wales
PPM Griffith Pioneer Park Museum
RSL Returned and Services League of Australia
TNSW Tourism New South Wales

iv
Abstract

Since at least the 1970s Australia has, as a nation, officially declared itself to be
‘multicultural’ and has adopted ‘multiculturalism’ as the approach to its increasingly
culturally diverse population. Since then, multiculturalism in Australia, as elsewhere
in the western world, has come under sustained critique by both those who think it
has ‘gone too far’, and those who think it has ‘not gone far enough’. These critiques
have left many wondering whether multiculturalism is still an appropriate and
valuable response to cultural diversity for both governments/the state and the
populations who contend with cultural diversity as part of their everyday lives.

This study attempts to move beyond these critiques and proposes a local place-bound
study as one way in which we might further our understandings of multiculturalism
in the Australian context and capture some of the complexities elided by these
nonetheless useful critiques. The study draws on both textual and ethnographic
research material, and employs discursive and deconstructive techniques of analysis
to achieve this.

The population of the regional centre of Griffith in the Riverina region of New South
Wales is culturally diverse. Griffith is located within Wiradjuri country and became
home to large numbers of non-Indigenous people after the establishment of the
Murrumbidgee Irrigation Scheme in the 1910s. It continues to be a destination of
choice for immigrants, largely because of the availability of work, particularly in
agricultural and related industries.

The study reveals that in Griffith multiculturalism is generated, negotiated and
performed at the local level, in and through the everyday lives of local people, as
much as it is through government intervention. It is part of the lived experience of
people in culturally diverse Griffith. The kind of multiculturalism they live can be
seen to be positive, pervasive and dynamic and it is something that is deemed to be
of great value. They have embraced the idea of multiculturalism and of their
community as multicultural to the extent that it is an important part of how they see
themselves.

While Australian Federal Government conceptions of multiculturalism clearly
inform local discourses, with all the limitations this can bring, the conservative
understandings articulated federally are made redundant by local manifestations of
multiculturalism in Griffith, where there is a desire to both foster and further
multiculturalism. The case of Griffith suggests that there is hope for
multiculturalism and that multiculturalism can still inform an ethical mode of
engagement for people from diverse cultural and ethnic traditions. Australia,
however, also has an Indigenous past and present and this continues to pose the
ultimate challenge to and for multiculturalism, including in Griffith.

v
Introduction

“Yesterday, being the King’s birthday, Mr Cunningham planted under Mount
Brogden acorns, peach and apricot stones, and quince seeds, with the hope
rather than the expectation that they would grow and serve to commemorate
the day and situation, should these desolate plains be ever again visited by
civilized man, of which, however, I think there is very little probability.” That
night, the southern horizon was seen to be in flames, the bush having been
1
fired by the Aboriginals.

The Wiradjuri language is spoken differently all through- there are different
dialects... although we’ve lost most of ours and that’s why they’re trying to
bring it back by teaching the younger ones some of it…I’ve always regretted
not knowing my language and that was stopped through the managers, and
that, that were on the reserves at the time we weren’t allowed to, our people
weren’t allowed to, the older ones, to teach us…and it wasn’t just being
pushed onto the reserves and places like that, they were taken there for
protection as well because of the way they were being treated and
murdered…when we lived on the missions and reserves we were getting
rations, and that wasn’t much…after the war broke out they cut all that
2
out…so we went to work around the towns.

I am a proud Australian and I have a proud Italian heritage. I was born in
Plati Reggio, Calabria, in southern Italy in September 1949. My father left
Italy for Australia in late 1949 with the hope of finding a better land that
would offer work and stability so that he could bring up his family. He later
moved to Griffith and commenced working with the Water Irrigation
Commission, now known as Murrumbidgee Irrigation, building channels and
bridges from Griffith to Hay for the delivery of water to the farming
communities and their properties. They camped in primitive conditions of
four poles covered with a tin roof, Hessian bags for walls and a dirt floor. In
1956 my parents purchased a 25-acre mixed fruit farm at Yoogali. I am very
proud to be a farmer and a representative of the Australian Labor Party, which

1
Extract from Richard Johnson’s The Search for the Inland Sea: John Oxley, Explorer, 1783-1828
(2001: 66-67)
2
Interviewee 1, 6 Oct 2004
1
has contributed so much to Australian closer settlement, which, of course, is
the creation of family farms. Out of the great diversity has been born a unity
that has seen Griffith and the MIA being hailed as the birthplace of
3
multiculturalism.

This is a study of the regional centre of Griffith, located in the state of New South
Wales (NSW), Australia. Griffith has a complex history of interwoven strands that is
4
consistent with settler societies like Australia generally. In what follows I aim to
further understandings of the history and geography of multiculturalism in Australia
by looking at the ways in which ‘multiculturalism’ is constructed in discourse and
manifest in everyday lives in Griffith.

Englishman John Oxley, a surveyor and explorer for the colonists in the 1810s, found
the land around Griffith ‘uninhabitable’, and ‘so utterly destitute of the means of
affording subsistence to either man or beast’ (Johnson, 2001: 66), perceptions which
continue to resonate with many non-Indigenous residents of Griffith. Oxley’s
observations, which are repeated in numerous sources related to Griffith, form part of
the discourse of Terra Nullius (land belonging to no-one) in Australia which was
used, along with other similar discourses, to justify the theft of Indigenous land. The
land was, of course, spoken for, as even Oxley realised, and had provided subsistence
for the indigenous Wiradjuri people for tens of thousands of years. Despite Oxley’s
prediction, the English, and others, returned to this part of Wiradjuri country, and
Wiradjuri people have suffered greatly as a result. Wiradjuri people have, however,
survived, but now ‘share’ their land with the many migrants, from diverse
backgrounds, that have subsequently made a life for themselves in Griffith.

Griffith, therefore, has many narratives, many ‘maps of meaning’ (Clarke, Hall et al.,
1976: 10; Jackson, 1989), all of which have implications for the present and are the
foundations on which multicultural Griffith has been and continues to be built. One
of the aims of the study is to capture something of these overlapping discursive
formations which collectively construct multicultural Griffith. Among these are the
relatively recent ideas about Griffith as a pre-eminent example of the Australian

3
Edited extract from the Hon. Tony Catanzariti, MLC’s inaugural speech to the NSW Legislative
Council, 3 July, 2003
2