Criticism of the lack of cultural diversity in the Australian Hip Hop music scene is increasingly growing internationally. As the mainstream scene here remains predominantly white despite growing talent from various diverse cultural backgrounds, the biggest names in the industry…

The United Nations has again criticised Australia’s human rights record in relation to its treatment of asylum seekers and refugees. A report by the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Torture, Juan Méndez, has raised a number of concerns.  Read more: http://theconversation.com/lashing-out-at-the-un-is-not-the-act-of-a-good-international-citizen-38587

Britain’s Home Office has caused a public outcry over its treatment of LGBT asylum seekers. Aderonke Apata, a Nigerian LGBT rights campaigner, applied for asylum in the UK after facing persecution in her native home as a result of her…

Community leaders are calling for more voter education for new and emerging communities in New South Wales in the run-up to the state election. The Ethnic Communities Council (ECC) of NSW said not enough was being done about voter literacy…

Most of us have chowed down on a chicken korma, munched on marsala and scoffed samosas. Now, the secret of why Indian food tastes so good has been revealed. Indian food, with its heady mix of multiple ingredients and intoxicating…

In the 1970s Neil Sedaka penned and recorded the country-pop crossover song Amarillo. In an unmistakably mid-western, yearning-for home-refrain, he asks: “Is this the way to Amarillo”… Riffing on the themes of displacement, homesickness and loss Sedaka continues: “When the…

The English language and most other European tongues may be the result of a mass migration of people from the Cossack lands of the eastern steppes, according to a new study. DNA scientists who conducted the study now believe that…

Australia’s leadership ranks still lack cultural and gender diversity, while significant barriers to employment participation persist for other diverse groups, according to diversity advice group the Diversity Council Australia. More than ever before, Australian employers must rethink what they’re doing…

BEING born on a sinking boat as the child of refugee parents is an experience that tends to shape your world view. Nam-Ha Quach’s arrival in 1979 was a momentous one, with his parents fleeing Vietnam in a rickety boat…

Bunnings’ Hoppers Crossing store provided a free DIY workshop for AMES’ Karen clients in their own language. Five clients attended the session at which AMES student Jonathan Shwe acted as interpreter. Jonathan said that the participants enjoyed the session and learnt…

Up to 80 pieces of clothing have been delivered to children in a remote Chin village in Burma thanks to the generosity of a group of AMES volunteers and sewing groups across the country. The clothes made were a result of…

A new training package to assist people who help young refugees and migrants was recently launched by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Social Services, Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells. The package, ‘Engaging Respectfully with Young People (from Refugee Backgrounds)’ was…