☕️ Australian unis' racism problem

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May you not feel like you’re in a tug-of-war today.

The quote: "We have nothing to hide. We have called for the full release of these files repeatedly. We think sunlight is the best disinfectant."
Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, speaking to the BBC, responding to questions about the files from investigations into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Clinton and her husband, former U.S. President Bill Clinton, have been called to give evidence to a U.S. government committee investigating Epstein and his associates.

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Palestinian-Australian author and advocate Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah will be featured at this year’s Sydney Writers’ Festival.

It comes after the former board of the Adelaide Festival uninvited her from its Writers’ Week.

Backlash to that decision led to the Adelaide Writers’ Week being cancelled.

Sydney Writers’ Festival CEO Brooke Webb said their event is “not in the business of cancelling or censoring writers.”

Dr Abdel-Fattah is a Palestinian-Australian lawyer, author, and advocate. She has published 12 books and is a researcher at Macquarie University in Sydney, specialising in areas including Islamophobia and Palestine.

In January, the Adelaide Festival board removed Dr Abdel-Fattah from the lineup of the Adelaide Festival. It said “it would be culturally insensitive to allow her to participate” in the wake of the Bondi terror attack.

Dr Abdel-Fattah has been a vocal critic of Israel and has been accused of antisemitism.

At the end of 2024, she wrote on social media: “May 2025 be the end of Israel”. She also wrote: “if you are a Zionist, you have no claim or right to cultural safety”.

She has since said to the ABC: “My post made clear that I oppose the espousing of Zionist ideology [but] NEVER the unsafety of Jews”.

Dr Abdel-Fattah said the decision to pull her from the festival was a “blatant and shameless act of anti-Palestinian racism”.

Other authors due to speak at Adelaide Writers’ Week withdrew in response to her removal. The festival then cancelled Writers’ Week, saying it was no longer viable.

Sydney Writers’ Festival (SWF) is an annual event to celebrate literature and ideas in Australia.

This year, it is running from 17-24 May, with at least 100,000 people expected to attend.

On Wednesday, the festival confirmed Dr Abdel-Fattah will feature in two of its 200+ events.

SWF CEO Brooke Webb said: “We think a writers festival provides a rare and welcome opportunity for readers and writers to come together for nuanced conversations about complex and sometimes difficult topics.”

Dr Abdel-Fattah said of the announcement: “In the midst of suffocating repression and racism, celebrate the wins. May we all remain undisciplined.”

Alex Ryvchin, co-CEO of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, told ABC News the decision is a “deliberate provocation and a middle finger to the Jewish community”.

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More than 70% of students and staff have reported experiencing direct or indirect racism at Australian universities, according to a report from the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC).

The Government-commissioned report found universities are failing to meet their duty of care, with complaints processes described as inadequate and difficult to navigate.

The AHRC surveyed 76,000 students and members of staff for its report.

In 2022, the Federal Government set up a body to review the uni and vocational college system, called the Australian Universities Accord.

It handed down its final report in 2024, which included a recommendation that the Government study “the prevalence and impact of racism” at unis and colleges.

The Federal Government asked the AHRC to carry out this review. It surveyed more than 76,000 people, including domestic and international students, and academic staff and non-academic staff.

In 2025, the AHRC surveyed students and staff about their experiences at uni in the past two years.

Questions included if they had experienced indirect racism, such as witnessing racist behaviour or attitudes towards their community, though not at them specifically.

Of the 76,000 respondents, 70% had experienced indirect racism.

Almost 15% of respondents to the online survey reported experiencing direct racism.

Two in five students who had experienced direct racism reported it had a negative impact on their studies.

Of those who didn’t report experiencing direct or indirect racism, one in five had seen racism on campus.

Students reported incidents of racism most often occurred in tutorials and classrooms.

Among staff, one in five reported experiencing direct racism in their workplace.

This occurred most commonly during meetings or in shared spaces such as staff rooms or kitchens.

The majority of students and staff who had complained about direct racism said they were unhappy with how their university handled the process.

The report looked at anti-racism policies across all 43 Australian universities.

Almost three-quarters of institutions (30 universities) were found to have “limited” policies or strategies in place, while two universities had “no evidence” of any anti-racism measures.

A quarter of universities (11) were found to have advanced policies or strategies in place.

The AHRC made 47 recommendations to prevent and address racism at unis.

They include asking the Government to pass a bill to change the Racial Discrimination Act, so that workplaces must proactively work to stop racism.

The Government passed a similar amendment to require workplaces to stop sexism in 2022.

It called on all universities to develop an anti-racism plan, covering all staff and students, in collaboration with people affected by racism.

Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman said universities have a “duty of care to provide a safe, inclusive environment,” which is being “viscerally broken by racism.”

At a press conference, Federal Education Minister Jason Clare said the report highlights that universities are “not doing enough” to stamp out racial discrimination.

In a statement, peak body Universities Australia said it “stands ready to work constructively… to ensure this work begins without delay and delivers meaningful, transparent change.”

Reporting by Achol Arok.

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The 41-year-old went into the 2026 Games as a five-time Olympic medalist, but victory in the one-woman bobsleigh event at Milano-Cortina delivered her first gold. Speaking to BBC Sport, Meyers Taylor said the win “just goes to show you... to keep persevering.” She thanked her team and supporters, adding “it means so much to come away as Olympic champion.” The previous record was set by 40-year-old Austrian snowboarder Benjamin Karl at the Olympics just over a week ago.

Reporting by Emma Gillespie.

TDA PSA: Your drunk purchases probably aren’t as bad as you think, unless you’ve ever bought a football club. 

That actually happened to UK entrepreneur Rob Smethurst, who told the BBC he was four days into a bender when he heard his local club was up for sale. 

Macclesfield had just been liquidated, with what was left of it put online for sale, including a rundown 4,000-seat stadium.

The impulse buy has since become more than a drunken whim. Smethurst has said taking over the club gave him purpose at a time he was struggling, and that rebuilding Macclesfield slowly helped him turn his life around.

Reporting by Pavitra Ravi.