Advocacy and Campaigns
Advocacy seeks to ensure that all people in society are able to: Have their voice heard on issues that are important to them. Protect and promote their rights. Have their views and wishes genuinely considered when decisions are being made about their lives.
The #RacismNotWelcome campaign is a community-led, grassroots initiative intended to acknowledge the existence of racism, validate people’s lived experiences with racism and normalise conversations about racism whilst igniting change.
The Inner West Multicultural Network decided that more needed to be done to provide a safe platform for people to speak out, to normalise discussion about racism at a community level and to help communities fight racism together.
An important element is the erection of #RacismNotWelcome street signs in every Local Council across the country as a public demonstration that it is no longer hidden, taboo and left to fester, but is acknowledged, called out, and not welcome.
These signs are the physical manifestation of the underlying principle that racism exists, it is real, damaging and deeply harmful to many Australians and that we all have a responsibility to confront it, every day.
Why Does It Have To Be A Street Sign?
The permanency of the street signs shows that this campaign is here to stay until we see real change and ensures that this issue cannot be swept under the rug anymore.
This has resonated with a large number of people from the community, especially kids and young adults, because it gives a voice to those with lived experience and gives confidence to people to speak up and call it out.