The ABC reports
The government-funded Legal Aid agency in NSW has been accused of racism and discrimination by a number of its own employees.
Key points:
- Lawyers Sarah Ibrahim, Jayne Christian and Tendayi Chivunga say they experienced racism while working at Legal Aid NSW
- An anonymous survey of Legal Aid NSW staff detailed more than 50 incidents of racism last year
- The acting CEO of Legal Aid NSW emailed the organisation’s Aboriginal Staff Network and acknowledged discrimination within the organisation
7.30 has spoken to 20 current and former employees from Indigenous and culturally diverse backgrounds who said they had felt racially targeted while working at Legal Aid.
Their main concern is that racism has had a significant impact on their mental health and their career progression.
Over the past six years at least 23 culturally diverse staff have left the organisation, in what some have described as an “exodus”.
Egyptian-born lawyer Sarah Ibrahim, who has worked for Legal Aid for over a decade, has decided to blow the whistle on her employer, saying the organisation poses a serious risk for racial minorities.
“I don’t know every marginalised, racialised person in Legal Aid, but all I know is that I’m not alone,” Ms Ibrahim said.
“My observation of racism in Legal Aid means you are excluded at different points in time where you shouldn’t be, where you’re overlooked where you shouldn’t be, where you’re seen as a problem when you shouldn’t be, or where you’re not seen as an authority in spaces where you should be.”
Read the full article at
