Elite Actors: Understanding Representation of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Communities in the Australian Health System Through an Intersectional Lens

Abstract

Culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) communities are disproportionately affected by health disparities in Australia. An important political strategy to address these disparities is to increase CaLD representation in leadership roles within Australian health system. In this paper, we examine how certain members of CaLD communities occupy these representative roles in the Australian health system. Using the lens of intersectionality, we dissect the privileged yet simultaneously marginalised positions they occupy as ‘CaLD elite actors’ representing their diverse communities. We describe Australia’s assimilationist political environment as an important context that influences the formation of three categories of CaLD representation within the health system: ethnic councils, health consumers and multicultural health workforce. Then we draw on our positionalities as CaLD elite actors in relation to Asian-born gay men in Australian HIV sector to highlight the significant limitations with the narrow focus on representation as a political strategy. Instead of situating representation as an objective, we propose that representation should be considered a continuous process of power-sharing and reflexivity for CaLD elite actors and wider Australian health system.