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Chapter 8
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Hate Race, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Racial Discrimination in Australia
Racism, Childhood, and Loss of Innocence
Race and Beauty Standards
Injustice and Complicity
The Power of Words
Summary
Analysis
In 1988, Australia is seeing a resurgence of white supremacist rhetoric in its politics. It is also the year of Australia’s bicentennial and the Olympics, leading to a great deal of excitement in the country. While watching the Olympics with her family, Maxine sees footage of people marching on Harbour Bridge, waving the Aboriginal flag and signs that say things like “WHITE AUSTRALIA HAS A BLACK HISTORY.” She asks Cleopatra about this, and Cleopatra explains that it is a protest against celebrating the bicentennial, since the time of European settlement was, according to Cleopatra, “not a nice time for Aboriginal people.” Maxine thinks of a movie she saw in which the Aboriginal Australian people’s absence was explained away by them being scared away by bunyips (evil spirits from Aboriginal mythology).
Although Maxine was originally skeptical about the existence of Aboriginal Australians due to not having heard about them in school, the demonstrations at the Olympics lead to her once again becoming curios about them. This time, Maxine believes Cleopatra’s explanation—but, as shown by her conceptualizing Aboriginal genocide through a movie she’s seen, her lack of education in the matter prevents her from fully understanding the gravity of Australia’s history. Even so, she is slowly beginning to understand more of her country’s violent past.
Themes
In class, Maxine’s teacher explains to her that the settlers are renowned for being the “pioneers” to first discover Australia, which confuses Maxine since Aboriginal Australians were already there when the settlers arrived. One day, Cleopatra discovers that Cecelia has traced a picture of Captain Cook surrounded by racist caricatures of Aboriginal people from her textbook, which Maxine notices upsets Cleopatra. Later, Cleopatra takes the children to the library, where Maxine asks the librarian for books on the Aboriginal people. When she looks in one, she sees an illustration of the Myall Creek Massacre. Disturbed, she returns the books without borrowing them.
Both Maxine and Cecelia’s experiences show how their school is failing them with regards to education about Aboriginal Australians. Maxine’s confusion at her teacher’s remark highlights the inherent contradiction in colonialist narratives of Australia, but Cecelia’s drawing indicates how the girls are still internalizing racist ideas without even realizing it..
Themes
Maxine’s school prepares to celebrate Colonial Day, part of the bicentennial in which all the children are required to dress up in colonial-era clothing. Maxine notices that Cleopatra seems displeased when she learns about this, but she sews the girls dresses and bonnets for it anyways. Maxine goes up to her while she’s sewing and tells her that she doesn’t want to participate in Colonial Day; when Cleopatra asks why not, Maxine doesn’t explain, but in reality, she’s upset by what she’s learned about the brutalization and erasure of Aboriginal Australians. Cleopatra has her participate in the parade anyway, but Maxine has begun to think more deeply about Australia’s Black history.
Maxine’s deepening knowledge about Aboriginal history is a double-edged sword. Although it is deeply important history for her to learn about, it is also emotionally difficult for her to learn about the horrific treatment of Black people in Australia. That Maxine is reluctant to participate in Colonial Day suggests that she already understands that holidays like these are implicitly celebrating the subjugation and murder of Aboriginal Australians.
Themes
