Why the Pauline paradox nobbles the prospect of real change

July 26, 2026 — 5:00am

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.

Remove items from your saved list to add more.

Last Sunday night, Channel 7’s Spotlight underscored the Pauline Hanson paradox. She draws attention to legitimate concerns over immigration and integration, but makes constructive discussion nearly impossible. Her clumsy attack on multiculturalism has had the effect of turning an imprecise term into a motherhood statement which unites opposition to her without clarifying the topic she raises. She channels some people’s deep-seated fear without being able to articulate it clearly enough for the root cause to be treated.

There are two ways of responding to a Pauline paradox. One is to ignore the confusion and embrace the opportunity to ventilate the issues. The other is to take advantage of the muddle to ignore them. Naturally, the Albanese government prefers the latter.

To be entirely historical, Hanson has not single-handedly injected the discussion over immigration and integration into the public debate. Rising rents and housing shortages have played a significant role in concerns over the rate of immigration. Australians have expressed increasing concern over community cohesion since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, revealed that the unwritten immigration decree – that old wars should not be brought to our shores – had been breached.

Polls, including Demos, have found that Australians are uncomfortable that the Israel-Hamas war has become a major, or at least persistent, issue in Australian politics. A decade earlier, polling found that Australians were in favour of banning the burqa which, through its visibility, can function as a proxy for concerns over integration.........

© Brisbane Times