The RDA aims to protect the rights of minorities, by sanctioning those who restrict or impose on the liberties of the following acts on the basis of their racial identity; “gaining employment, accessing training, advancement, equal pay or conditions of work. Land, housing or accommodation, provision of goods and services such as applying for credit, using banks, seeking assistance from government departments, lawyers, doctors and hospitals, or attending restaurants, pubs, entertainment venues and so on. Access to places and facilities for use by the public and freedom of joining a trade union.” (Racial Discrimination Act, 1975) Since its beginning, there have been over 10,500 complaints filed with the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) …show more content…
The physical effects of violence often cause less damage to the individual victim than the psychological effects.’ (Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, 1991). The Inquiry recommended the government introduced measures to include civil solutions for racist harassment and incitement to racial hostility, which would broaden the range in which the RDA was ‘enforceable’ to include public places and ease civil unrest. (Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, 1991) Similarly, the Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody requested the RDA introduce further legislation to ‘proscribe racial vilification and to offer a conciliation mechanism for dealing with complaints of racial vilification’ (Commonwealth of Australia, 2002) or simply ‘hate speech’. The committee argued that furthering the legislation would reiterate the importance of speech, advising that ‘language itself can be a variety of violence’ (Commonwealth of Australia, 2002). In 1994, the Racial Hatred Bill which highlighted the relationship between racial vilification and racist violence ("Racial Hatred Act", 1995). The amendment to the RDA states, under section 18C that it is “unlawful to give a public act that is moderately likely to ‘offend, abuse, humiliate or intimidate’ someone on the grounds of race” (Attorney-General’s Department,