Hanson says one of Australia’s biggest ideas has 'failed'. The reality is more complex

June 19, 2026 — 8:00pm

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I was contemplating Pauline Hanson’s need for a monoculture, while I viewed with wonder the “cultural quilt” displayed at Cabrini Hospital, comprising dozens of colourful separate patchwork symbols and the written commentary commemorating the myriad nationalities that comprised the Cabrini “family.” Then I thought to myself, “If we follow her path, we’ll be harking back to the days of “meat, two veg and dollops of tomato sauce”. Peter Russo, Brunswick West

Accepting change takes time Your correspondent (Letters, 18/6), has a much better sense of reality than Pauline Hanson does. As a son of a 1949 refugee family, I recall the then parochial and anti so-called ″⁣New Australian″⁣ attitudes of many Australians. Hearing comments like ″⁣why don’t you speak Australian or go back to your own country″⁣, was not unusual. Thank goodness Australia has matured, no doubt in part because of our acceptance of multiculturalism. My parents were grateful for the opportunity to establish a new family life in a new country and worked hard to be accepted in their new homeland, but did not reject their own cultural background. I would like to think they added to Australian culture and values in many ways. We can all learn from the range of cultures we are exposed to without sacrificing the core values which bring cohesion to societies. Cultures change slowly, but do so over time. A purely Australian culture (as distinct from characteristics), is hard to define and in any case is not static, but perhaps universal values which support the creation and maintenance of a cohesive and caring community is a better place to focus our attention. For most of us, accepting change takes time, but to all those One Nation supporters, do you really want to take us back to the ’40s and ’50s? Charles Griss, Balwyn

Australia’s values are fracturing It is laughable listening to all the faux outrage at Pauline Hanson’s reference to maintaining an Australian ″⁣monoculture″⁣. I would urge all voters to listen to her whole address instead of taking notice of “edited” bits of the speech written without context. Surely people of common sense would understand that her reference to monoculture meant what so many people are now wanting with a louder and louder voice. Australia needs to be a country of unity and shared common Western values – values that have underpinned this country’s history and which have been so attractive to the many people who have migrated here for those very reasons. Australia is undergoing is a fracturing of those values and we are seeing the results of this fracturing in that we have a royal commission on antisemitism and social cohesion. If our shared values are not fracturing there would be no need for a such a commission. Jan White, Donvale

THE FORUM

Hanson, pay us a visit Each March, in our small Victorian town, we celebrate ″⁣Harmony Day″⁣, as do other towns and cities around the country. Our schools celebrate in their classrooms, and large crowds come to our main street to see our many local cultures celebrated for what they are – a rich tapestry of traditional songs, languages, dances, stories, clothing and cooking that have evolved from their many homelands. Afghan, Indian, Sri Lankan, Philippine, Thai, Japanese, Irish, Korean, Chinese, Sudanese Australians and other first and second-generation immigrants and refugees are cheered for what they are – the people of our planet who have landed for various reasons on a foreign shore, as indeed did all our forebears. Indigenous dancers honour their ancient rituals in their own land, and invite us to join in. Our community would welcome the leaders of the party that advocates a ″⁣monocultural″⁣ society to come along next Harmony Day. Let’s sit down together and listen, and talk. William Twycross, Mansfield

A beautiful picture Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, for your front page picture of those four beautiful young Australian Socceroos stars (19/6). Surely these boys, and their wonderful migrant colleagues in this country, will overcome the One Nation ugliness once and for all. Nick Bailey, Northcote

Forced removal Monoculture? We’ve tried that before. One of the consequences of it was it made it seem right and proper to remove children from their parents. And, of course, there was the donations of blankets. That was OK at the time, too. Ian Brain, Ballarat

Policy negatives Columnist Jenna Price is right to call out Pauline Hanson for her attitude to the perceived inequities of the Family Court’s allocation of access and responsibility (“ Family Court would be a disaster if Hanson had her way ”, 18/6). Suicide is a tragedy, not a political football: Hanson is way out of court in claiming…