Australian Attitudes toward Immigrants: A Review of Social Survey Findings

Abstract

Before the large scale immigration of European refugees began in 1949, the Australian population was almost entirely of English, Scottish and Irish origin. In 1947, 90 per cent of the population had been born in Australia and another eight per cent born in other British countries. Today only about 80 per cent of the total population were born in Aus? tralia and over 10 per cent were born in non-British countries. At the time when the immigration programme began in 1948, Aus? tralians as a whole were unfamiliar with non-British people and were opposed to their admission as immigrants, especially to those from Southern Europe, and from Asia and Africa. For example, in 1948, nearly 80 per cent of a Melbourne sample were opposed to the large scale