ABSTRACT
A fair multicultural society can be defined as a multilingual population with a wide range of ethnicity, religions, customs and cultural practices that co-exist in harmony and equality. This chapter explores government policy and the community sector’s response towards building a more equal and just society. Statistics show that people from non-English speaking backgrounds and Aboriginal people continue to experience more significant health decline, poverty, community disengagement, unemployment and underemployment and low participation in higher education than the rest of the population. Although significant community services and support programs for migrants exist, disadvantage in culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) populations continue to exist. Most services are developed on a response basis: they address advance issues that might be prevented through early intervention. Most of these programs are funded to address the immediate problem and are effective at producing outcomes that show service recipients achieving an immediate goal. However, none report long-term benefits, identify recurrent issues or measure building of clients’ capacity to address barriers unassisted. Can we link the persisting patterns of disadvantage in CALD and Aboriginal communities to services and programs that only focus on a band-aid solution rather than addressing the roots of the problem?
