The Call it Out Racism Register
The Call It Out First Nations Racism Register is led by the Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research (Jumbunna Research), in partnership with the National Justice Project, and was launched on 21 March 2022 to coincide with the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
Call It Out was developed to record all forms and levels of racism and discrimination experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, without the usual barriers which often inhibit reports of racism. The Register is designed to allow respondents the freedom to share any experiences they consider relevant to shape a comprehensive representation of First Nations peoples’ lived experiences of racism and discrimination. It covers interpersonal as well as structural racism and violence perpetuated by government agencies and institutions, both of which we know are incredibly harmful.
Call It Out was developed to record all forms and levels of racism and discrimination experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, without the usual barriers which often inhibit reports of racism. The Register is designed to allow respondents the freedom to share any experiences they consider relevant to shape a comprehensive representation of First Nations peoples’ lived experiences of racism and discrimination. It covers interpersonal as well as structural racism and violence perpetuated by government agencies and institutions, both of which we know are incredibly harmful.
Racism is often under-reported because the discrimination laws are narrow and often ineffective, meaning it is very hard for most people to successfully challenge racism and discrimination through a legal process. But that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t happen. The experiences reported to Call It Out reflect the extensive nature of what communities have experienced for hundreds of years and continue to face each day.
Call It Out is an ongoing, respondent generated initiative with a national focus. It provides a simple and secure online mechanism where anyone can report incidents of racism experienced directly or witnessed.
Reports to Call It Out can relate to current, historical or ongoing racism that occurs anywhere – at an organisation or while interacting with a government service, in public or private, in the media or online. Reports can be made online using the Call It Out Mobile App (free to download on App Store and Google Play) or Web App. Reports can also be made using print, digital and Easy Read forms (available for download on Call It Out’s Resources page), or by phone.
These reports are collected, held securely and analysed by Jumbunna Research to inform annual reports to help raise awareness and drive systematic change. Webinars of the launch of the 2022-2023 annual report ‘In every corner of every suburb’, the 2023-2024 annual report ‘If you don’t think racism exists, come and take a walk with us’ and the 2024-2025 annual report ‘Everywhere I go, no matter where, if it’s around non-Indigenous people I feel a hate vibe. It feels like I am being watched’ are available.
A key objective of Call It Out is to generate evidence to support First Nations leaders, organisations and advocates in garnering support and resources to develop further tools and strategies to continue the fight against racism and protect future generations.
Investigation into the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) criminal justice system.
This project was commissioned by the ACT government. It was undertaken by members of the Indigenous Law and Justice Hub within Jumbunna Research at UTS. The team included Chris Cunneen, James Beaufils, Fiona Allison, Tatiana Corrales and Ayse Selcuk. The research work was completed between 2023/25.
The project had a strong focus on engaging with the First Nations community in the ACT, including those incarcerated in adult and juvenile prisons. We conducted a total of 68 recorded dialogues/interviews with 175 individual participants and 71 different community organisations, legal services and government agencies, plus several workshops and webinar events.
In our Final Report we made 99 recommendations. We focus on matters specific to the criminal legal system, including youth justice, policing, bail, sentencing, imprisonment and post-release reintegration. We also consider systems and issues that sit outside the criminal legal system and are deeply connected to the problem of over-representation, such as education, child protection, health, and housing. We considered broader matters related to decision-making, accountability and systemic racism.
There is also an Executive Summary and Community Guide available, as well as a recorded webinar which discusses the findings in the Final Report.
The report artwork ‘Journey to Justice’ was created by three Wiradjuri, Barkindji and Bundjalung young people, Erica-Jade Church (18), Jayde Mitchell (15) and Damon Brown (15). It is protected by Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property (ICIP) rights. The artists describe ‘Journey to Justice’ as follows:
As proud, Aboriginal young people, we recognise the significant challenges we face within the justice system. We have grown up knowing about deaths in custody, police brutality and racism. Something that we shouldn’t be worrying about but unfortunately is our reality.
Our artwork shows the journey of Aboriginal people in the justice system. We used lots of colourful dots to tell the story because we want our people to have bright futures despite the barriers. Each dot represents a person and their own journey. There are also symbols that represent the community surrounding our people. All the people are moving toward a big, bright star in the middle. We wanted the star to be the light at the end of the tunnel. It represents hope, fairness, and equality.
This painting is about not giving up, even when systems are working against us. We want to believe change is possible.
Evaluation of the Bush Money Mob Initiative (The Kimberley, WA)
Bush Money Mob is a free financial counselling agency operating throughout remote areas of the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Bush Money Mob specialises in working with remote Aboriginal people to solve their financial crises.
Allison, F. Cunneen, C. & Beaufils, J. (2024). Evaluation of the Bush Money Mob Initiative, Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research, University of Technology Sydney.
The Northern Territory Aboriginal Justice Agreement and other work in the NT
Allison, F. & Cunneen, C. (2022). A framework model for investigating systemic racism. Aboriginal Justice Unit, Northern Territory Government. (unpublished).
Allison, F. & Cunneen, C. (2020). Access to justice in the Barkly (NT), Jumbunna, University of Technology Sydney.
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