Episode 1: The Bookshelf - British India, White Australia: In Search of a Social History

In the first episode of ‘The Bookshelf’, a new ISAS initiative dedicated to scholarly works on South Asia, we speak with Kama Maclean, Professor of History at the University of New South Wales in Sydney on British India, White Australia, which unearths the complicated colonial dynamics between India and Australia and their relationship before India’s independence in 1947.

In her talk, Professor Maclean discusses the Immigration Restriction Act, which earned the country the name ‘White Australia’ for its prevention of non-white migrants from settling there—often by linguistic means! She touches on racism under the Empire; the positive legacy left by Indian hawker settlers; and social bonds transcending the ‘commonwealth’ commonalities most often evoked in celebrations of the countries’ shared histories. Through a careful archival reading, Kama Maclean’s book paves the way for a nuanced, social history of old colonial ties.