Australian Arabic Council oppose ethnic descriptors

Following September 11, 2001, the Australian Arabic Council and others advocate the elimination of ethnic descriptors. The Council claims that media reports using descriptors of ‘Lebanese’ or ‘Middle Eastern’ have become commonplace singling out Arab Australians. With the trial of the gang rapists in Sydney, the Council also condemns attempts to highlight a link between crime and ethnicity. The Council states that “linking criminal activity and ethnicity is based on ignorance and effectively sanctions discrimination against people from an Arabic background.”