Comments on: Anna Donald on colonialism and skin tone

By: Ruth Howard

Ruth Howard — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 01:32:25 +0000

Hey Anna!Im thinking Ill stay connected in here simple energy conservation strategy for perhaps both of us! Hey I loved hearing your voice possom! I send you very much love love love.It looks like you have several blogs within this site?

Weve had a fab time and myself a whole weekend of art therapy without my wee(increasingly boistrous)creature!

Mums has also just returned from a central desert painting journey OMG! Beaut series of new images up on http://www.artless.com.au.If you can ever have a trawl.

My heart is hanging out here, I love you.
XRuth

By: Richard Smith

Richard Smith — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:09:27 +0000

I was having lunch with Peter Richardson, and he remembered a four hour lunch with you where you gave him enough new ideas to last five years. He also said that reading your writing was like having you in the room, which I think a great compliment. You have “a voice,” something that many people who write a lot never manage to achieve.

By: Anna Donald

Anna Donald — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 09:32:11 +0000

Glad to read more news of you, and your travels.

By: Tom C

Tom C — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 02:53:25 +0000

Have a wonderful week in the desert, Anna - and thank you for your email. Lots of love, Tom

By: Kate

Kate — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 15:46:47 +0000

Your blogs are a source of inspiration. I’m so glad you had a wonderful holiday.

By: Anna Donald

Anna Donald — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 14:56:33 +0000

Oops! I mean why Indians are NOT called Asians in Australia (fumble fingers that I am at the moment). Here, Pakistanis are called Pakistanis or people from Pakistan.
They are NOT called Pakis, thank heavens. That is a uniquely British bit of bigotry which as an Australian citizen I’m happy to disown (trouble is I’m British too).

Wish I could disown the other terms prevalent here (though, thank heavens, not anywhere close to as much as when I was a kid): gook (Chinese or other SE Asian), wog (Mediterraneans), power-point (Asian in the Oz sense; my brother was once called that, passing briefly through a phase when he looked a lot like Mum); Abos (Aboriginals; their self designated name is usually blackfellas, who form a mob [group])the list goes on. Thank goodness we never exported the term ‘nigger’ here (at least not that I’ve ever seen; it might happen in the bush).

The world, the world which is so wonderful and so completely frustrating. Of course I don’t want to die of cancer, but sometimes I think it wouldn’t be so bad to be free of all the daftness and terrible suffering that greed and fear generate over and over again. Which, for all my errant breast cells, I don’t suffer much from at all except as a part of the community who can’t help but witness people less fortunate around me, even in cushy old Sydney. Must stop this diatribe. There. Bed time. May all bigots be hung up by their toenails and dipped in boiling oil. :)A

By: Anna Donald

Anna Donald — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 14:33:29 +0000

Good question about why Indians are called ‘Asians’ in Australia. When I first arrived in Oxford I got very het up about Indians being called Asians; I thought it was disrespectful to assume anyone from the enormous landmass of Asia should all be called the same thing. But then I realised everyone used the term ‘Asian’ to mean people from India and Pakistan. Here, ‘Asians’ mean people from South-East Asia, China and Japan. Indians are called Indians. I don’t know which bit of the colonial British civil service, no doubt, made this distinction, but there you are. (If you’re really interested I could probably find out).

PS Am going away to the central desert with my father for a week. Will have a blog ready when I return. Anna

By: amit

amit — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:31:20 +0000

aaah

igloo and hartley

strange name but awesome song

they were fantastic on Jonathan Ross

great blog - your article hit the nail on the head…sad but true!

By: Dr.Viveck Atheya

Dr.Viveck Atheya — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 16:33:18 +0000

stop giving us the jitters

By: shyla

shyla — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 10:33:53 +0000

anna, you must have noticed the worried tone of all the emails ‘cos of your silence. i am so glad you had a relaxing holiday.
hard working chinese and indian immigrants(by the way, why are indians not ‘asian’ in aus??)seem to inspire a lot of resentment and racism.to continue the theme, chinese and indian students scored the highest grades at last years GCSE results in the UK.i’m indian, married to an indian/chinese man.i periodically sit around feeling smug till something mundane brings me down to earth.
by the way, my husband’s tumour turned out to be ?paraganglioma/?pituitary adenoma. we are now awaiting the dreaded ’second opinion’ on the biopsy as both seem rare dx in the sphenoid sinus.
this week’s song ought to be igloo and hartley’s ‘in this city’. again weird but catchy.the lead singer has a tendency to sing topless, with jeans which are perilously low on his hips.
have a good week
shyla

By: Vivian

Vivian — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 09:20:45 +0000

Dear Anna
Am so pleased you had a good holiday and have progressed from wheely trolly to mountain bike!
Metta, Vivian

By: Belinda

Belinda — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 23:25:30 +0000

Isn’t it just because the Chinese, including you, are better at everything than the Anglos, including me, are and it makes us petulant? And I suppose, afraid? Glad to hear your voice again….

By: justin jewitt

justin jewitt — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 16:01:51 +0000

Anna

My God sunbathing and toilet humour - you return with a renewed energy , different colour and the descriptive skills to have us be there with you and the family skeleton closet.

Enjoy the spring.

Best regards

Justin J

By: Tom

Tom — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:08:34 +0000

Read Risa for this week. I bet Mike will like his new title!

Glad the trip up North was good. (It’s nowhere near East Timor you dingbat.)

Love you mucho,
T.