Nearly 70 per cent of university students and staff experience racism, 'harrowing' report finds

Racism at Australian universities is systemic, according to a report from the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), which found seven in 10 people experience some form of discrimination based on race.

Of the 76,000 people who participated in the landmark study, 69 per cent said they experienced indirect racism at university, with 14.9 per cent - around 11,300 people - saying they had experienced direct racism towards them.

The survey found over 90 per cent of Palestinian students and 89 per cent of practising Jewish students had experienced racism, as well as 81 per cent of Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander students.

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Race Discrimination Commissioner Giridharan Sivaraman said the results made for "harrowing reading", and indicated the issues were widespread.

"[They] indicate universities have not met their duty of care," he said.

"Students and staff have also made clear that the racism experienced at Australian universities is not limited to interpersonal acts. It is deeply entrenched in university policies and practices.

"These structures exclude, dismiss and invalidate, even if no racial slurs are said."

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The report also found three-quarters of international students said they had experienced racism during their studies in Australia.

Students said they were more likely to experience racism in smaller spaces such as tutorials and classrooms, whilst staff said shared spaces like staff rooms and kitchens were places where they said they had experienced racism.

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Despite the high rates of racism found in the survey, only six per cent of respondents said they had reported incidents of racism, with many saying they feared consequences against them, or worried that nothing would come of action being taken.

Federal Minister for Education Jason Clare said he was concerned by the findings of the report.

"There is no place for any form of racism in our universities or anywhere else," he said.

"Universities aren't just places where people work and study, they are also places where people live, and we need to ensure they are safe and free from racism."

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