mind the hajib

So I was walking down the street the other day with my flatmate, Aamer, and his workmate, a woman.
If you haven't noticed, Aamer is not an anglo-celtic name.
Yes indeed, I was walking down the road with my flatmate who is a Muslim and a workmate of his who is also a Muslim ... let's call her ... Amanda (yes, not all Muslims in Australia have Middle Eastern names as not all Muslims come from the Middle East or have a heritage that lies there).
She wears a hajib like the one depicted on the side here. Except her eyes don't look as freaky as this model's do.
Anyway, I was walking through Melbourne's CBD with the hajib (or hijab) wearing Amanda and my flatmate and then an eighteen or so year old man seemingly muttered something directed at Amanda.
Now Amanda didn't hear what he said but the fact that there is doubt as to whether or not what he did say was directed at her suggests that she has plenty of experience with this unfortunately not so random kind of abuse from so-called average everyday people.
But it gets worse.
Later that day, just as she left work, Amanda was accosted by another man who called her a bitch.
This wasn't a man she knew. This wasn't anyone at all in particular. This was just some racist fuckface who decided for whoever knows what reasons that it would be appropriate for him to walk up to a woman he has never seen before and will never see again and abuse her simply because she is clearly a Muslim and wears a hajib. And this kind of behaviour regularly happens to her.
What the fuck is going on?!
So, in what way is Australia not a racist country?
When 5,000 anglo-celtic Australians deem it appropriate to claim the beach at Cronula for white people against middle easterns;
When politicians say in parliament that allowing RU 486 - the abortion pill - to be prescribed in Australia will somehow make us more like a Muslim country;
When the Goverment maintains a mandatory detention policy for refugees;
When our indiginous populations are politically, socially, economically, spiritually and fucking totally disenfranchised if not violated;
When our Prime Minister says that he would never condemn an 'Australian' for wearing an Australian flag with pride (despite the fact that this so-called pride was in the name of hate of non-whites);
When an Australian woman cannot walk down the street wearing costume that clearly identifies her as a Muslim without routinely being verbally abused.
How can we call Australia a tolerant country? Much less alone one that celebrates its diversity.
Crappy Stolenwealth Games opening ceremonies do not qualify as celbrating diversity!
That's just tokenism.
Goddamn I love a sunburnt country...
Ranty rant rants.
On a lighter note, I am now going to go play Mario World III.
Because even ranting ranters need to chill.
Wahoo!