Black-Africans in Australia

Black-Africans in Australia are designations used for people of African descent who reside in Australia. The term is used by and of Australian citizens who trace their ancestry back to people who were indigenous to Sub-Saharan Africa. The majority have relatively recent origins in Africa, while some trace their lineage to the first slaves brought by British and French colonists to the mainland of North America.

History
Immigration from Africa to Australia is only a recent phenomenon, with Europe and Asia traditionally being the largest sources of migration to Australia. In 2005-06 permanent settler arrivals to Australia included 4,000 South Africans and 3,800 Sudanese, constituting the sixth and seventh largest sources of migrants respectively.

Historical archives suggest that convicts transported to Australia included Afro-Caribbeans. African Americans were stationed in Australia as US soldiers and sailors during the Second World War and Vietnam War, allowing opportunties for then predominantly white Australia to come in contact with a new and different ethnic group However immigration from Africa to Australia remained limited until the 1990s.

Most Black Africans in Australia come from South Africa, often coming over through the skilled migration program. Opportunities in Australia, as well as push factors such as rising crime, unemployment and complications arising from the Black Economic Empowerment policies in their home country, have prompted many South Africans to migrate. Earlier Australia had taken in Zimbabwe migrants who left under following the end of white minority rule.

Recent conflicts in various parts of Africa, particularly around the Horn of Africa, have prompted Africans to migrate through humanitarian programs. Australia has also taken in refugees who left due to conflicts that emerged in the 1990s, such as in Sierra Leone, Burundi, Liberia, the Congo and Rwanda.

Use Of Terms

There is no clear definition of what constitutes being an "African Australian" (or "Afro-Australian"). Along with indigenous Africans who were born in Africa, the term could encompass people as disparate as Caribbean British, African Americans or Cape Malays who with an African upbringing or family background have chosen Australia as their new home. The Australian Bureau of Statistics records people according to their birthplace and their self-described ancestry, although aggregated data for Africa is split between "Sub-Saharan" and "North Africa and the Middle East".

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu