New anti-racism standard will force Australian universities to use definitions of antisemitism and Islamophobia

All universities will be required to adopt the anti-racism standard from 1 January 2027, and are allowed to use their own definitions of antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images View image in fullscreen All universities will be required to adopt the anti-racism standard from 1 January 2027, and are allowed to use their own definitions of antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images New anti-racism standard will force Australian universities to use definitions of antisemitism and Islamophobia Higher education chiefs, academics and students to give evidence this week at royal commission Australian universities will be required to adopt definitions on antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from next year, under a legally enforceable standard designed to stamp out discrimination on campuses. Details of the anti-racism standard will be published on Monday as university bosses, students and academics prepare to appear at the royal commission into antisemitism and social cohesion. A seperate set of governance principles will also become enforceable standards, including an obligation on public universities to publish vice-chancellor salaries, spending on consultants and the outcome of board meetings. The introduction of a formal anti-racism standard was part of the antisemitism plan the federal government published after the Bondi massacre, and a recommendation from the Human Rights Commission’s landmark report on racism at Australia’s universities. The Respect at Uni report found racism was “systemic” on campuses, revealing cases of Palestinian students being mocked with shouts of “terrorism”, First Nations students being compared to “petrol sniffers” in lecture halls and Jewish students being fearful of attending class. Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email Under the standard, the universities will be required to adopt a definition on antisemitism, Islamophobia and racism towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, create a “transparent” complaints process and issue guidances to students and staff. The universities are allowed to use their own definitions, including for antisemitism, meaning the institutions will not be forced to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition . The IHRA definition is contentious because of concerns it could be used to shut down criticism of the state of Israel. ABC and SBS refuse to adopt antisemitism definition used by royal commission Read more Universities Australia last year adopted its own sector-wide definition of antisemitism, which stated that criticism of the Israeli government was not necessarily antisemitic but could be if it was ground in “harmful tropes, stereotypes or assumptions”. An audit conducted by the emeritus professor Greg Craven on behalf of th