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In 1901 most Australians were loyal, white subjects of the British Empire with direct connections to Britain. Within a hundred years, following an unparalleled immigration program, its population was one of the most diverse on earth. No other country has achieved such radical social and
demographic change in so short a time. Destination Australia tells the story of this extraordinary transformation.
Against the odds, this change has caused minimal social disruption and tension. While immigration has generated some political and social anxieties, Australia has maintained a stable democracy and a coherent social fabric. One of the impressive achievements of this book is in explaining why this might be so.
Eric Richards recounts the experiences of many individual migrants from all over the world, examines the dramas and challenges of officials involved in this grand experiment
and ends up telling a truly remarkable story. Compelling and revealing, Destination Australia is essentially the Australian story of the twentieth century.
Preface
1 The new century: 1900 and 2000
2 The slow awakening: 1900–14
3 Migrants and the Great War: 1914–18
4 White British Australia resuscitated: the 1920s
5 Malaise, recrimination and demographic pessimism: the 1930s
6 Race, refugees, war and the future: 1939–45
7 Arthur Calwell and the new Australia: 1945–51
8 The great diversification: the 1950s and 1960s
9 White Australia dismantled: the 1970s
10 The end of the heroic days: the 1980s
11 Whither immigrant Australia?
12 The new century
13 Retrospect
Statistics
Notes
Select bibliography
Index