Challenge what you know
Everyday Racism is the first mobile app of its kind designed to challenge your understanding of racism.
- 7-day challenge to improve your understanding of racism
- Immerse yourself in a new environment and face daily scenarios
- Test your own limits and overcome your fears of speaking up
Everyday Racism App
A world-first mobile phone app, Everyday Racism is a game/education app, which challenges players to live a week in the life of an Aboriginal man, a Muslim woman, an Indian student or just yourself.
Available for the first time in Australia, Everyday Racism offers a journey to better understand racism by walking in the shoes of someone else for seven days.
It’s an immersive experience where over the course of one week, you’ll receive texts, tweets, images and videos that will challenge you and your assumptions. It will help you understand the importance of speaking up when you witness racism.
Seize this opportunity to experience what life can be like for ethnic and cultural minorities in Australia.
Take the 7-day challenge
Is there somebody you know who needs to take the challenge?
Perhaps they are a community or business leader who is influential and can set a good example by playing the game. Or perhaps they are a frequent perpetrator of racism and need to experience racism to learn empathy towards targets of racism.
Whoever they are, you can challenge somebody to take the 7-day #EverydayRacism challenge by tweeting your challenge with the tag #EverydayRacism.
Everyday Racism Impact
In the 12 months since the app launched, more than 25,000 people downloaded it. Early results from a survey of Everyday Racism players (analysed by the University of Western Sydney) reveal that players:
- 76.5% have increased awareness of racist talk and actions
- 90.7% perceive the app’s effectiveness at encouraging bystander action
- 60.0% have spoken up against racism since playing
- 97.9% perceive the importance of action
Awards
The app was awarded second place in the world for a 2014 Intercultural Innovation Award, sponsored by BMW Group and the United Nations Alliance Of Civilizations (UNAOC). This included a cash prize plus mentoring to increase the reach and impact of the app.
The app was also one of three winners of the PEACEapp prize 2015, awarded by the United Nations Alliance Of Civilizations (UNAOC). This included a cash prize and attendance at the PEACEapp conference.
Who’s behind the Everyday Racism App?
UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN SYDNEY
UWS is behind the Challenging Racism research project led by Professor Kevin Dunn.
Challenging Racism is an anti-racism research collective based at the University of Western Sydney. Researchers from around Australia contribute to the project, which is led by Professor Kevin Dunn. The initial interest of the project was the geography of racism in Australia, however over its 15 year history the project now encompasses a wide range of anti-racism research. Core interests of researchers involved in the project include bystander anti-racism (what ordinary people who encounter racism can do to respond); the effectiveness of different types of anti-racism in varied contexts; and Australians attitudes to diversity and experiences of racism.
UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
The McCaughey VicHealth Centre for Community Wellbeing works with communities to create the foundations for a healthy start to life and reduce race-based discrimination.
Established in 2006, the McCaughey VicHealth Centre for Community Wellbeing works with communities to create and exchange knowledge on the social, economic and environmental bases for health, equity and community wellbeing. Undertaking research that fosters policy development, teaching, workforce development and knowledge translation, the Centre works to: create the foundations for a healthy start to life; reduce race-based discrimination; increase social inclusion; enhance health and community services; promote safe and healthy work; and increase access to safe and supportive built and social environments.
DEAKIN UNIVERSITY
The Centre for Citizenship and Globalisation at Deakin University seeks to understand how citizens, political groups, and corporations interact with each other.
The Centre for Citizenship and Globalisation, located in the Faculty of Arts and Education, Deakin University is a Strategic Research Centre that focuses on the nature of globalisation and its impact on the relationship between individuals and nations. The Centre seeks to understand how citizens, political groups and corporations interact with, and claim membership of, social, economic, political and cultural organisations within and beyond individual countries. This involves innovative research on belonging, participation and accountability in contemporary and historical contexts, taking into account the impact of new technologies while attending to issues of gender, ethnicity and religion.
INDIVIDUALS
There are ten people who were a part of the reference group and each of them brought key contributions in terms of real-life experience and advice for the development of the app.
To create the character of Aisha, the Muslim woman in the game, Zubeda Raihman, Mariam Veiszadeth and Aisha Jabeen were our references.
Behind the character of Pat, the Aboriginal man, Blake Tatafu, Adam Hansen, Nat Heath and Peter Dawson spent time to share their experience with us.
The character of Vihann is based on the stories shared by Rahul Dhawan, Mridula Amin, and Tanvi Bedi.
