Fairfax media has maintained an ongoing commentary on racism and related phobia practices prevalent in Australian society.

A recent article by the Foreign Editor claimed that ” racism is what we think of ourselves and others”, accompanying a racist attribution to Sonia Kruger.

The use in this context demeans the crusades of anti-racism luninaries such as Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela, who took on authentic racism- segregation, apartheid, imprisonment, torture and murder- not a recent mother , frightened by world events , providing an honest but misguided contribution.

The claim comes with Orwellian overtones – “Thought Police ” monitoring every cerebral instance to punish transgressions.

As stated, it’s actually daft- “what we think of others” is formed by engagement, experience, education and environment, translated into an opinion – whether “the others” are Black, Muslim , LGBT or born again Christians. If the intended tenet is that racism is a ” state of mind, ”  there’s a case to go back for English lessons and then have a debate.

Authentic racism is practiced across the globe –  by terror organisations such as ISIS, who murder more Shi’ite Muslims than Non -Muslims , within a state, such as Saudi Arabia, which forbids non – Muslim places of worship, and within a society, such as India, with its caste system.

That there are instances of racist abuse and behaviour in Australia is a reality, which needs to be called – however, it serves the media bandwagon to take a breather, grant a little oxygen to freedom of expression and adopt  a more judicious and balanced agenda before attributing the ” racism ” handle.