I’m Not Racist, But…

Overview

Why, exactly, do people start sentences with the qualifier, “I’m not racist, but...” only to continue with some kind of preposterous generalisation in which a particular race is linked to a particular trait or behaviour? If you’ve been wondering the same thing and wanting to talk about it, here’s an event for you.

Titled I’m Not Racist But..., it’ll be an interactive evening during which four speakers give top-speed ten-minute talks before host Tom Tilley opens up the floor for discussion. The special guests are comedian Ronny Chieng, Australian Human Rights Commissioner Tim Wilson, Co-Chair of the National Congress for Australia’s First Peoples Kirstie Parker and John Safran, who recently published his first book Murder in Mississippi.

Presented by the NSW Reconciliation Council in conjunction with Sydney Ideas, the event hopes to inspire open, critical discussion concerning racism in Australia.