School Panel Accused Of Racist Attitude

Sydney Morning Herald

Tuesday May 4, 1993

By SIAN POWELL Education Writer

The State Government's commitment to rid Casino High School of racism has foundered, according to an Aboriginal community representative.

The representative, Mr Peter Savage, said he felt intimidated by the other members of a panel convened to hire a new deputy principal for the high school.

In a letter to the Minister for Education, Mrs Chadwick, and the administrators of the North Coast region of the department, Mr Savage wrote: "Throughout the culling and the interview, I had felt intimidated and forced to go along with the majority. This complaint is to make people aware that the system and process are not designed in any shape or form to cater for minority groups' needs."

A scandal erupted at Casino High School late last year when an inquiry into the suspension of an Aboriginal student found that racism had been entrenched there for some time. The list of racist actions that dogged the school for years culminated in a teacher calling Aboriginal students "scum" and "vermin"in the playground.

All staff members were offered transfers, and the panel to hire a new deputy principal was convened last month. The successful candidate was appointed two weeks later.

Panel members included the new principal, an elected staff member who has been teaching at Casino for some years, the principal of Kyogle High School, a representative of the P&C Association and Mr Savage, the only Aborigine on the panel.

The Aboriginal community helped draft the advertisement for the position, which stated the applicant should have "an understanding and appreciation of the needs of Aboriginal students and a commitment to Aboriginal education".

But Mr Savage was upset to find that the requirement for an understanding of Aboriginal culture was not considered any more important than eight other requirements.

Mr Savage wrote: "I believed that I was chosen for my expertise and experience on Goories (Aborigines) and that it was a special fitness appointment. Throughout the day, I was repeatedly told that the Goorie criteria was only one of the nine. This left me with the impression that, after all Casino High School had been through, the issue of racism was of no great significance."

The Opposition spokesman on education, Mr John Aquilina, said he thought the situation was disgraceful.

"I am astounded that following racist incidents receiving national publicity, the Government's reconciliation process overrides the will of the local Aboriginal community," he said.

"Clearly, the Aboriginal community is not the only group with a view on such an issue, but if their views are denied in a case where the reason for the vacancy arising was a history of racist incidents, their views should not be ignored."