Ethnic culture and political participation : a study of Greeks in Australia 1926-1970
Date
1977
Authors
Holbraad, Christina
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Abstract
This study deals with the political facets of the Greek sub-culture in Australia ever the period
1926-1970. Ideas on how far it is legitimate, expedient and possible for Greeks to participate in
the Australian political process are identified and linked to assumptions and beliefs about the
relationships of equality and of unequal power in which Greeks are involved, and about the
importance and consequence of ethnicity as a social identity.
These ideas were traced in the commentary of major ethnic- newspapers from the mid 1920’s to the
mid 1960's. This material was supplemented by conversations with ethnic leaders in the Sydney
Greek community, with Greek trade unionists in industries employing large numbers of Greeks and
with Greek aldermen in areas of Greek concentration.
Chapter I discusses the conceptual framework for the analysis. Approaches to political
participation axe characterized according to the priority accorded to demand activity and to the
scope of such activity. It is argued that such ideas are shared, patterned and transmitted over
time in the ethnic group and can therefore be studied as elements cf the
ethnic sub-culture. The nature of demand activity is discussed in order to specify the particular
beliefs and assumptions which will be identified and traced over time. These beliefs are
integrated into models cf belief systems constructed with reference to the cultural patterns which
have been identified in studies of certain types of peasant communities and of
Greek village culture.
Chapter II discusses the methodology of the study.
Chapter III sketches the social conditions which constitute the setting for the development of
ideas over the period. The history of the ethnic group is reviewed with reference to the internal
structure of the minority, its corporate resources for negotiation with the broader system and
Australian attitudes towards immigrants. The period was subdivided in the light
of major changes in the social context of ideas.
Chapter IV deals with ideas during the period 1926 to 1935. It is shown that the beliefs of this
time preclude a participant orientation to the broader political process. In relation to the host
society Greeks saw themselves to be powerless and marginal and in relations between themselves to
be divided and incapable of making common cause. On the other hand the notion of common interest
and belief in the necessity for corporate organization contain the seeds of development towards a
participant outlook.
Chapter V shows how, between 1936 and 1950 the idea of common interest was enriched and attached
to confidence in the group’s collective future in Australia. The minority’s integration in the
society as an entity communicating with the broader system through corporate structures becomes a
collective aspiration. Demand activity, confined mainly to instances of overt discrimination is
defined as legitimate and feasible. These ideas develop in the context of the unquestioned assumption that the minority constitutes a distinct, separate and subordinate social
entity in the society and that the potential for integration and political efficacy depends on the
ability of the group to generate viable corporate structures.
Chapter VI deals with the emergence of a new view of the minority's place in the society in the
1950’s. This draws the line between relations of equality and inequality at the boundary of
social class. This view, which is articulated by the Greek left, derives the group's rights and
potential for effective political activity from the status of post-war Greek immigrants as part
of the Australian working class. Radical thinking articulates the right to equality of opportunity
and significantly extends the scope for legitimate and effective demand activity. The idea of
bonds with Australian collectivities is developed by de-emphasising ethnicity. In the context
of the ideological conflict within the ethnic communities during
this period, the conservative sections in the communities articulated an interpretation of
immigrant existence which was designed to counteract leftist ideas. They emphasized the primacy of
ethnicity as a social identity and highlighted those facets in the aspirations and life situation
of immigrants which are least compatible with political participation.
Chapter VII uses the assessments and experiences of individuals in leadership positions to show
how elements in the radical and conservative thinking of the 1950's became incorporated in the
common stock of ideas about rights and political efficacy. In the context of widespread acceptance
that Greeks are entitled to equality and of a general belief in the potential for collective
influence, the knowledge that ethnicity entails social distance and impedes easy access to
Australian institutions no longer constitutes an unsuperable obstacle to seeking political
solutions to a wide range of needs associated with ethnicity. In the early 1970's Greeks seemed to
be at
the point where ideas favouring political participation were widespread enough to encourage the
integrative mechanisms through which participant ideas could be transformed into the habits of
participation.
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