Share of negative responses toward selected religions in Australia 2019, by religion

When asked about their personal attitude towards various religions in Australia, 40 percent of Australians surveyed had a negative attitude towards Muslims. Buddhists appeared to be least likely to elicit negative responses and around 14 percent of respondents responded negatively to Christians.

 Islam in Australia

Muslims represent almost a quarter of the religious diversity in the Asia Pacific region and Australia’s neighbor, Indonesia, has the largest Muslim population in the world. In Australia, Islam is the second largest religious group but less than three percent of the population are Muslim, compared to over 50 percent of the population identifying as Christian. The Australian Muslim community is very diverse, consisting of migrants from Bangladesh, Lebanon, Turkey, as well as Australian-born Muslims of European heritage.

 Australians increasingly less religious

The 2016 Australian census revealed that an ever-increasing number of Australians are selecting “no religion” in the optional census question on religious affiliation. This drop in religious affiliation is a common trend in many economically developed countries, although some of Australia’s minority religions like Islam and Buddhism are still showing some growth. In contrast, Christianity appears to be declining, especially amongst people under the age of 35, an age group that also recorded higher numbers of people with no religion.