LOTE collections in public libraries: A testament to Australia’s multicultural policy and practice

By Tin Nguyen

Australia, as a developed country with a thriving and successful multicultural policy, has come a long way since its formal White Australia Policy (Immigration Restriction Act 1901). The White Australia Policy was formally abolished in the 1980s through the initial migration of Vietnamese refugees as part of the political and humanitarian fallout of the Vietnam War, which opened up Australia from European-based immigration to broader immigration, not strictly based on race and ethnic lines. Ever since, Australia has continued its commitment to multiculturalism, which has changed the landscape of Australian society for the better. There are currently over 300 languages spoken throughout Australia (SBS, 2018) with 67 percent of residents born overseas (ABS, 2017).

A library’s role

One place where the success and value of multiculturalism in everyday Australia can be seen is in the public library. Many of our public libraries hold language collections other than English (LOTE). The decision to start a language collection is usually based on the number of people speaking that language within a municipality, sourced from ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) census data and internal local government council sources. LOTE collections are of great value to ethnic communities as they enable them to stay engaged with the literature of their home country. While most migrants have chosen Australia as their next destination home based on its culture and societal norms, it is essential for these migrants to retain their identity and practise their own culture –and they can do this through accessing seminal and contemporary literature through the public library.

LOTE collections can also act as a bridge for first and second-generation migrant families, particularly for migrant families with children who grow up in Australia. Access to the language collections allows parents to ensure that language, culture and heritage are passed on to the next generation. There has been a general trend of secondgeneration children losing the ability to speak their parent’s languages, and this is a loss to their cultural identity, as much of it is based on a foundation of language literacy. As long as public libraries continue to provide language collections, these second-generation migrant families are able to revisit their culture through their local library, which may spark further selfexploration and identity-making later on.

Some collections have been extended to include children’s books, as well as bilingual children’s story-time programming by native speakers of those languages. Apart from private language providers, it is rare for Australian public services to provide these multicultural services beyond the once-off Harmony Week and Lunar New Year celebratory programs. The regular provision of these programs in native languages ensures the robustness of bilingualism within Australia, which is healthy for a thriving and prosperous society that values differences in cultures, rather than monoculture as evident in certain well-known authoritarian states around the globe.

It is not only ethnic communities who benefit. LOTE collections allow Australians immediate exposure to worlds outside the Anglosphere. This is highly important in breaking the norm of monolingualism in this country, which does a disservice to Australia’s international standing as an exemplar of multiculturalism.