Luke Foley Said “White Flight” Is An Academic Term (Not Racist) And Then Said Actually, He’s Heaps Sorry

    There are still plenty of hours left in the day, so there could be more to come.

    Brad Esposito
    by Brad Esposito

    BuzzFeed News Reporter, Australia

    New South Wales Labor leader Luke Foley has apologised for using the term "white flight" when discussing refugee immigration and suburb development in a story with the Daily Telegraph on Thursday.

    Erik Anderson / AAPIMAGE

    The member for Auburn featured on the front page of the Telegraph, lamenting the "slow decline" of suburbs in Sydney's west, saying employment was down and "white flight" was increasing.

    Describing a middle ring of suburbs in Sydney that needed resources and support, Foley said "many Anglo families" had moved out, while the number of refugees had increased.

    People did not take kindly to Foley's comments, labeling them racist, "weird and fucked up", and "incredibly fucking stupid".

    jack ✨ @jackisahack_

    ah, the latest episode in "Luke Foley says weird and fucked up stuff to the Daily Telegraph"

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    However, Foley did have one person championing his words: One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, who said Foley's comments only reflected what she had been saying for 20 years.

    The Today Show @TheTodayShow

    Pauline Hanson has praised the NSW opposition leader for his comments about the changing make-up of many Sydney suburbs, Labor's Luke Foley says there's a so-called "White Flight" from suburbs such as Fairfield, as thousands of overseas refugees move in. #9Today https://t.co/vWmEEzochJ

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    "They're not assimilating," she said, referring to refugees. "There will be ghettos here."

    On Thursday afternoon Greens MP Mehreen Faruqi said the opposition leader had "sold out every person of colour and every migrant" with his comments.

    “NSW Labor used to have a proud tradition of standing up for migrants and multicultural communities," Faruqi said in a statement.

    “We need to call out lack of investment in public transport, healthcare and education in southwest Sydney, but suggesting that only Anglo families are suffering is just ridiculous and offensive. It creates division and seeks to blame non-Anglo people for this when it is the government at fault.

    “Language like this ... scapegoats refugees who are already amongst the most vulnerable in the community and it emboldens racism at the local level."

    New South Wales premier Gladys Berejiklian, whose parents immigrated to Australia, also criticised Foley for his comments during Question Time in the NSW parliament.

    Tom Rabe @Rabe9

    Berejiklian, whose parents immigrated to Australia, says Foley’s comments were “deeply divisive, offensive, dangerous and nasty”

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    Following the public backlash, Foley initially defended his use of "white flight," saying it was an academic term.

    "It's an identifiable phenomenon in many western cities that reflects the changing cultural mix of many suburbs," he told ABC radio, saying the issue was more about class than it was about race.

    Later on Thursday afternoon, however, Foley retracted his statements justifying the use of the term. "I meant no offence," he told Ten News. "But some people have told me today they find the term pretty unpalatable so I won't use it again and I apologise."

    Catalina Florez @florezcata

    After justifying using the term "white flight", Labor leader Luke Foley has now retracted, telling #TenNews "I meant no offence but some people have told me today they find the term pretty unpalatable so I won't use it again and I apologise" #nswpol Full story on @tendailyau soon

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    There are still plenty of hours left in Thursday, so there could still be more to come. At the very least, Luke Foley has certainly had a long day.