The migrant experience has not always been inviting. Over the past 200 years Australia has moved from its early immigration of white European settlers to incorporate new waves of immigrant groups. Each one has created a splash, a period of adjustment, but it also has finally found a way to the very interior of Australian society and Australian culture. Once limited to the humble meat pie or fish and chips, Australian fusion cooking is now world-renowned. Take-away generally consists of pizza, souvlaki and Thai or Indian curries, and there's nothing quite like the amazing goodness of a steaming bowl of Vietnamese soup noodles. Australia is now the destination of choice, housing some of the most livable cities in the world and with immigration continuing to fuel strong cultural and economic growth. As Australia opens its boarders to an increasingly diverse population, this also requires Australians themselves to open their minds to include new and diverse lifestyles, foods, cultural traditions and values. This has not always been the case. Over the year it has been found that migrants have always struggled, to fit into Australian society and still face feelings of alienation and harassment.
Through the use of visual and written texts, it is known that migrants are the subject to much criticism. They are criticized due to their beliefs, their unique lifestyles and culture they have brought to Australia from their foreign land. Many of these texts express the same feelings of confusion, expressions of being given a new start in a new country, a country where there is a language barrier between the migrant and the citizens, making this challenge even more taunting. The poem ˜Migrant Woman on a Melbourne Tram' by Jennifer Strauss tries to communicate to the readers how difficult it is being the ˜odd' one out. The poet sets a casual scene, in a tram focusing on the thoughts of a migrant woman and her feelings of confusion and anxiety for what lies ahead.
