The Lines We Cross

In telling the stories of two Australian families, Abdel-Fattah’s novel examines the impact of xenophobia and racism on individuals and communities. Mina and her family members are asylum seekers who fled from the Taliban’s reign of terror in Afghanistan, while the Blaineys are white, upper-middle-class, Australian nationals. The persecution of Mina’s family’s restaurant by Blainey’s organization highlights the role of privilege in the marginalization and abuse of vulnerable populations by those who benefit and derive power from secure social status and citizenship. As Mina points out, refugees are not a credible danger to Australian society but rather a convenient scapegoat: “Oh, because women, children, and men fleeing persecution are such a threat, hey?” (35). The novel’s Muslim immigrants are an especially easy target for Aussie Values due to the intersection of xenophobia, racism, and Islamophobia. Contrary to the democratic values they claim to represent, the group proves more invested in performative outrage as Michael observes: “[T]they’re all bidding furiously, except it’s not to buy a house but to stake a claim as the most worried citizen [...] Li jumps in, worried about border protection and too many Asians buying real estate” (214). In addition to illustrating Aussie Values’ paranoia and disingenuousness, this excerpt captures the