The thing I don’t get about the “go back to where you came from crowd” is the apparent fear of and anger towards anyone who is different: different looking, sounding, with different habits, customs, language, religion or food.
I was in the supermarket today and two men were conversing in what may have been a sub-continental language – you know, any language of India, Pakistan or Sri Lanka. There are dozens if not hundreds of languages in that part of the world.
The two men were talking to each other, not to other shoppers nor were they seeking assistance from a member of staff. So why shouldn’t they be conversing in a language of their choice, one they probably grew up with? Conversing in a non-English language doesn’t mean they don’t know English, it doesn’t say anything about whether they are good citizens, caring people or useful members of society. It doesn’t even tell me whether or not they were born in Australia or are Australian citizens. All of these things make no difference to me. They were two people having a conversation in a supermarket. That is no threat to anyone.
Here is a small sample of English words that have Hindi or Urdu origins:
avatar, bandanna, bangle, bungalow, chutney, dinghy, gymkhana, juggernaut, jungle, khaki, karma, loot, mogul, pyjamas, shampoo, thug, typhoon, veranda, yoga.
So before you have a go at someone speaking a language you don’t know perhaps you could close your mouth, open your mind and realise that the way you do things is neither the only way or the best way. Or you could expand your mind by learning another language.