How does the Immigration Museum present the history of cultural diversity in Australia?
Introduction
Here in this report, the researcher will try to critically evaluate the cultural diversity of Australia and on that very note will evaluate the role of the Immigration Museum in keeping the immigration history of the country intact. The Immigration Museum of Victoria successfully maintains remnant of the immigration history of the country which categorically exposes the very era of the Austalian history in which people from other countries found their residing places in the various parts of the country. The history of immigration in Australia can be traced back to the date of 1820 when for the first time whalers and sealers have arrived on the Australian coast and marked the beginning of the immigration tradition of the country (Walsh, 2008). The tradition of immigration in Australia is a never ending process and the immigration process is still on even in the present day. The government of Australia also puts great emphasis on this very immigration culture.
The multicultural nature of the country is an outcome of the intermingling between people living in the various parts of Australia, but belonging to different countries who use to have different spoken language, attitude, beliefs and thought process (Taylor, 2001). The Immigration Museum has successfully recorded the gradual process of immigration that took place in this beautiful piece of earth. Here the researcher will try to capture this very essence of the Immigration Museum in which it becomes the banner bearer of Australia’s cultural diversity.
The Immigration Museum of Victoria, the popular most museum of the country, was located at the heart of the city of Victoria. The reasons behind choosing the Old Customs House as the most appropriate place for establishing the museum is partially due to the fact that in this very house there are ample records available about the goods which were exported and imported from the country since time immemorial. Apart from that the very house contains certain important documents which had detailed news about the immigrants who came to this country and the inhabitants who left the country for ever.
These documents greatly help the museum in collecting necessary details about the immigration history of the country. The museum is designed in such a way that it is really easy for a visitor to find any portion from the immigration history of the country with little effort and intention. The floor plan of the Immigration Museum of Victoria is built in such a way that each and every part of the museum clearly displays documents, mementos and remnants of a particular phase of Australian history. Soon after entering into the Immigration museum one can surely find places like Atrium, Courtyard, Education Centre, Grand Foyer, and Long Room (Museumvictoria.com.au, 2015). The museum is designed in such a way that it successfully categorises each and every phase of the Australian immigration history with minute details. The museum has separate sections in which the proofs of the Chinese, African, West European and Italian immigrants are properly demonstrated. The way in which the entire museum is designed, it will not be an exaggeration to say that the museum itself becomes a living example of the cultural diversity of the country.
Australia is a multicultural country (Healy, 2005). People from different parts of the world find this very place appropriate for establishing their habitation here. The country stretches its hands of support for the immigrants in such a way so that the immigrants can gain equal opportunity of earning livelihood, building up residing places and sustaining in this part of the earth along with its native people. The cultural diversity of the country raises its voice of support for the fact that the native people of the country also make a place for their immigrant counterparts so that they can live tension free in this very country. In the opinion of Wright (2013) the intermingling between the native people of Australia and the immigrants proves to be an enriching experience for the culture of both the native Australians and that of the immigrants.
It is necessary to understand that at this very juncture that the immigrant population of the country did not come from a particular overseas country. According to Campbell (2005), people from various parts of the world has gathered in this place only in search of an earning opportunity or for a safe place to reside. As far as the viewpoint of Walsh (2008) goes, the he immigrant population of the country primarily arrived at the Australian as a part of their attempts of doing business in this very land. Way back in 1820, a large number of sealer and whalers came to the Australian shore purely with the intension of doing business in this country. However, the situation is not always the same for all the immigrants coming to this country. The majority of the Chinese and African Immigrants found this place to be highly safe for building up residences to stay. The people from the other parts of the world used to get attracted by the ample resources that the country has with which any human being can ensure his/her future sustainability. Dunstan (2003) opined that the way in which the immigration history of the country evolved through a number of phases, it will not be an exaggeration to say that the country’s present state is the result of the combined effort formulated both by the native and immigrant population of the country. The immigrant population of the country becomes an inseparable part of the Australian society and it is pretty difficult to draw a line of difference between the immigrant population and the original native population of the country (Schwarz, 2003). In order to trace the ways in which this immigrant population becomes an inseparable part of the Australian society, it is indeed necessary to gain a good grasp over the immigration history of the country.
The immigration process of Australia can be divided in the following process. Back in the year 1820, temporary immigration took place in the country of Australia. On the other hand, in the year 1830, immigrants came and resided from New South Wales and United Kingdom. In 1840, United Kingdom contributed more to the list of immigrants. Year 1850 is of great importance as immigrants from United States, Denmark, Germany, etc came to contribute to the labour force. In the year 1880, Chinese immigrants added to the list of immigrants. From the year 1900- 1960, there was a great depression in the country that held the functions of the immigrants. However, from 1960 onwards immigration process started again with several updated policies (Press.anu.edu.au, 2015).
The way in which the immigrant population becomes an inseparable part of the country can be successfully depicted by posing a look at the official figures of the Australian government in which the government tries to relate the originality of the Australian employees working in the public sector companies. From the figure mentioned in the appendix, it can be inferred that the immigrants of the country Australia is full of diversities. It can be further deduced that 1.3 percent of people comes from North America and the Middle East portion, 1.4 percent of people comes from America, 1.8 percent of the people comes from the Eastern Europe region. On the contrary, North-east Asia contributes 2.9 percent of the immigrants, while Oceania and Antarctic contributes 3.8 percent. The most of the contribution comes from Southern and Central Asia, South –East Asia and UK and Ireland. They contribute 4 percent, 4.2 percent and 6.2 percent respectively. (Refer to Appendix)
This further reflects that the country of Australia is full of diversities. The population of Australia comes from various parts of the whole world. This further shows the country is full of cultural diversities. Therefore, the country needs to take several steps to measure and manage the cultural diversities of the whole country. The labour force of the country forms the core of the country. Therefore, the country needs to take several steps to minimize the risk of diversities.
Conclusion
It is really necessary to understand that the Immigration Museum of Victoria successfully keeps track of the immigration history of the country in which the coming of the immigrants in the Australian nations are successfully depicted. The immigration museum is successful in keeping pace with the historical development of the country in which the immigrant population plays an important role. The museum has been successfully designed in such a way that each and every phase of the immigration history of the country can gain special mention. The way in which the Australian immigrants find their places in the Australian society has got special mention in the museum. In addition to this, the historical development of the Australian society reveals a special phase in which the immigration population plays a large role in maintaining the multicultural nature of the Australian society. There is little doubt that Immigration Museum will provide immense help to the social researchers by providing ample information about the immigration history of the country.
Reference List
Campbell, P. (2005). Cultural diversity in music education. [Bowen Hills, Qld.]: Australian Academic Press.
Davies, C. (2005). Enacting cultural diversity through multicultural radio in Australia. Communications, 30(4).
Dunstan, P. (2003). Cultural Diversity for Life: A Case Study From Australia. Journal of Studies in International Education, 7(1), pp.64-76.
Healey, J. (2005). Multiculturalism in Australia. Thirroul, N.S.W.: Spinney Press.
Museumvictoria.com.au, (2015). About Us: Immigration Museum.
Press.anu.edu.au, (2015). Chapter 5. Migration, social cohesion and cultural diversity.
Schwarz, A. (2003). Modes of ‘unâ€ÂÂAustralianness’ and ‘unâ€ÂÂGermanness’: Contemporary debates on cultural diversity in Germany and Australia. Journal of Australian Studies, 27(80), pp.211-220.
Taylor, T. (2001). Cultural Diversity and Leisure: Experiences of Women in Australia. Loisir et Société, 24(2), p.535.
Walsh, J. (2008). Navigating Globalization: Immigration Policy in Canada and Australia, 1945-2007 1. Sociological Forum, 23(4), pp.786-813.
Wright, C. (2013). How Do States Implement Liberal Immigration Policies? Control Signals and Skilled Immigration Reform in Australia. Governance, 27(3), pp.397-421.
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