Social Darwinism In Australia

The largely white population of British descent harboured a strong feeling of hostility towards the non-white members of society, who were typically viewed as less intelligent, less civilised, and immoral. Federation presented an opportunity to define the new nation in racial terms. The theory of social Darwinism was used to legitimise white power justifying attitudes towards non-whites. During 1901 and 1903 many Acts were introduced to stem the flow of non-whites into Australia. The most significant of these Acts was the Immigration Restriction Act of 1901 (Critical Classroom, Australian Federation). There was universal support to exclude non-Europeans entering Australia. Coloured labour was also seen as a threat to Australia’s standard of