MELBOURNE, 22 May, 2023: Courage to Care Victoria has impacted the lives of more than 150,000 students in its 30-year history. Now they are setting their sights on an ambitious target – to double the number of students they reach in the next four years, as they forge ahead on their mission to create a generation of Upstanders against prejudice and discrimination.
With a concerning spike in recent reports of racism and discrimination, the organisation is calling upon the community to help them achieve their goal by donating to this year’s fundraising appeal. All donations will be matched to double the impact.
‘The Scanlon Foundation Research Institute – which monitors changes in social attitudes in Australia – found in its 2022 Mapping Social Cohesion Report that 61% of Australians who think it’s a “fairly big” or “very big” problem, and that discrimination and prejudice towards groups from different backgrounds persists, with:
- About one-in-six people experiencing discrimination based on their skin colour, ethnic origin, or religion.
- Almost one-in-four people born overseas, and more than one-in-three people who speak a language other than English, reported discrimination.
Guided by the belief that ordinary people have the power to turn the tide against discrimination and racism, Courage to Care’s trained and experienced volunteers work at a grassroots level with school students across promoting acceptance of diversity, transforming bystander behaviour and inspiring participants to become Upstanders in their own communities.
Evaluation shows an 86 % increase in students demonstrating Upstander behaviour after completing the program.
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The Upstander programs feature inspiring testimonies from Holocaust survivors and stories of other genocide survivors who were saved by the courage of others. These powerful stories, combined with practical tools, enable students to stand up against racism and discrimination in all its forms.
Courage to Care Chair, Judy Glick said “Most of us would like to think that we have left racism, Anti-Semitism and discrimination in the past, but sadly the data is showing this is not the case. As a former educator I am passionate about the power of education to create a generational shift. We know our Upstander Programs work, and we are determined to reach as many young people as possible so that one day we can make racism and combination a thing of the past.”
