Liz Deep-Jones is the Executive Producer of Mandarin News Australia. From a Lebanese background, she says many years ago she chose a career in television to help improve the representation of ethnic minorities in the media.She says the key to a successful multicultural Australia is learning to accept differences.
My parents left their hometown, Bterram in North Lebanon in the mid 60's seeking greater opportunities in Australia, known to them as the “Lucky Country” to start a family.
They settled in the beach-side suburb of Maroubra where my four siblings and I grew up in a happy household behind my parents' fruit shop.
Growing up in a very close-knit family instilled a very strong sense of self-belief and,
while my first language was Arabic and we were brought up with Lebanese cuisine, my parents were determined to assimilate. It wasn't an easy task and besides facing a clash of two cultures we also often experienced some challenging times because of our ethnicity.
Even though we had many friends from all backgrounds and we lived in a somewhat tolerant neighbourhood, I remember many encounters where my father was subjected to racial taunts which he didn't take too kindly. He would always stand proud and defend himself and explain that he chose to come to this country to make it his home and he would proudly yell, “I love this country. This is my home.”
No matter how hard my parents tried to fit in, there were still the ignorant few who targeted our store spraying “Wog Shop” on our front window and yelling out racist remarks. It was very hurtful and disappointing but my parents would just say, “Well, they don't know any better, just hold your head high and never be ashamed of who you are.”
These unfortunate incidences didn't stop my parents from encouraging us to lead an Aussie lifestyle, taking us to the local beach where we learnt to body surf and ride a boogie board. They always encouraged us to play sport, which was a great ice breaker and even went to the extreme of only speaking English to us, well-broken English as they desperately tried to fit in.
But I started becoming self conscious about my identity and looks, wishing I was blonde and blue eyed like most of the girls ast school, wishing that my food wasn't referred to as smelly and wishing that my dark skin didn't stand out.
I also noticed that people from different backgrounds weren't very well represented on television or in films and I don't remember seeing anyone on the small screen from a Lebanese background that wasn't cast as a gang member or terrorist. I wanted to change that and it became one of the main reasons why I pursued a career in television.
To this day, the representation of people from different backgrounds is still lacking in the media and film industry and I think that we still have a long way to go. Who is Australian? What does an Australian look like? Well, they look like you and me and it's about time that those in the advertising, media and film industries embrace who we are and represent our culturally diverse society.
Recently in my local café, as I was waiting for a take-away coffee, I engaged in a conversation with another customer standing at the counter. He asked me, “Where are you from?” I promptly replied, “I'm from Sydney.” He then asked, “No, I mean what's your cultural background?” I answered, “I'm Australian from a Lebanese background.” He snapped back, “Well, you can't help bad luck.” I was stunned but the barista wasn't surprised, and said: “See, that's why I never reveal that I'm Lebanese.” I strongly replied, “Well, I'll never be ashamed of who I am.”
I think it's important to be proud of who we are and where we came from and I'm fortunate enough to be able to pass this strong sense of belief on to my two children and ten nieces and nephews all of whom are from mixed backgrounds. It's a blessing to be a part of a family rich in diverse cultures which include Irish, Ghanaian, Chinese, Greek and Chilean. Our family is known as the “The Bennetton family” or “The United Nations” and while it's usually harmonious, there are challenges that come with this wonderful mix of different cultures. I've found that to achieve harmony you need to understand one another and learn to accept differences.
Harmony Day is being celebrated at schools across the country, including the one my nine-year-old daughter Bella is attending. Harmony Day gives everyone a crucial opportunity to better understand the richness people from culturally diverse backgrounds bring to our country. The kids proudly dress up in national costumes (Bella will be in her Irish football outfit) and share food from their varied cultures with the other kids -- Bella is taking tabouli, hummus and Lebanese bread. It's an inspiring and fun occasion which gives everyone a sense of belonging as they celebrate various cultures.
Last night, I was helping Bella with her speech for Harmony Day. The title is, “Racism, it's not funny,” and this is how she starts her speech.
“Racism is really not funny and I don't understand why some people think it is. In this world that we live in, why do people find it amusing to make fun of people that are different from them just because they have different colour of skin. We should never make fun of people just because they are different. This is something that should be embraced.”
It's not about the skin you are in, it's about who we are and the contribution that we can make to society. At the end of the day, we all want the same things: opportunity, happiness and a safe place to bring up our children. Why can't we all embrace the richness culturally diverse people bring to this country and equally share in the amazing melting pot of what is 'The Lucky Country'?
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