Tasmanian tribunal dismisses school racial incitement claim

The Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (TASCAT) has dismissed a mother's attempt to have a school investigated for inciting racial hatred against her children, citing insufficient evidence.

The mother had originally filed a complaint with the state's Anti-Discrimination Commissioner alleging race, age, and family responsibility discrimination, as well as victimisation and the incitement of racial hatred. While the commissioner accepted claims regarding direct race discrimination and offensive conduct for investigation, they declined the victimisation and incitement claims, leading to the merits review by TASCAT.

TASCAT senior member Robert Winter ruled that there was no proven causal link for the victimisation claim, noting that alleged detrimental incidents occurred before the school was notified of the discrimination allegations. Regarding the incitement claim, the tribunal found that while certain interactions were public acts, the conduct did not meet the legal threshold required to prove it was capable of inciting hatred, serious contempt, or severe ridicule based on race.