A parliamentary inquiry has opened into section 131a of the Queensland Anti-Discrimination Act, with advocates calling for something more clearly defined and tougher penalties for hate crimes. 

A group of 20 non-profit organisations, the Cohesive Communities Coalition lobbied the state government for the inquiry as part of a broader review of the discrimination act in light of more targeted attacks in part attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Christchurch mosque massacre.

Basketballer Patty Mills has been named Australia’s first Indigenous flag bearer for the Tokyo Olympics, alongside Cate Campbell.

Patty Mills said "As the first Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flag bearer, my connection between our country and this particular moment runs extremely deep.”

The opening ceremony for the Games, which were postponed a year because of the global coronavirus pandemic, will be held on 23 July.

Victoria is the only state in Australia recording data about ethnicity as part of the COVID-19 vaccination rollout, which some experts argue is vital to understanding the impacts of the pandemic on different communities.

In March, federal authorities told the ABC that data on languages spoken and country of birth would be collected when coronavirus vaccines are given and when people test positive for COVID.

A Brisbane man living in Bardon has allegedly had the Aborignal flag hoisted outside his home cut down and stolen from his front yard. 

Brad, who has first nations ancestry and who had raised the flag outside his residential home two weeks ago said the incident had been really confronting.

Given NAIDOC Week celebrations he said the act of cutting the flag down is assumed to have some kind of racial motivation behind it. 

Julian Assange would be permitted to serve any custodial sentence he receives in an Australian prison if convicted in the United States on espionage and hacking charges, according to new assurances made by the US government.

The assurances are seen as concessions in an attempt to extradite the 50-year-old to the US to face trial.

Mr Assange’s fiancé Stella Morris says the assurances aren’t concessions because foreign prisoners in the US have the right to request a transfer to their home country and she fears he would be kept in solitary confinement.

The future of casual dining is taking off in southeast Queensland, with several restaurants bracing for a robot revolution.

Among those embracing the changing ways include Sunnybank Chinese family restaurant, Impressive Dumplings, with new addition Bella already turning heads.

The robot waitress takes several dishes from the kitchen to the customer's table, complete with a smile.

Two bills are before Queensland Parliament today to reform the state’s rental system as part of the Greens move to bring more certainty to the state's 1.8 million renters and landlords.

The proposed Greens plan would cap rent increases to once every 24 months and end "no grounds evictions". 

Greens MP Amy MacMahon claims the current system breaches the human rights act when landlords are allowed to evict tenants without good reason. 

The move comes in response to a 53% increase in calls for help from Queensland tenants since the start of the pandemic

A woman living with disability is in opposition with a Victorian council over a lack of suitable parking options in her street after copping several fines.

Rhiannon Tracey has repeatedly been fined for using a no-standing zone outside her home in Geelong but said she has no other option.

Ms Tracey says “I'm having to park in no standing zones in order to have clear safe access into my home" 

Her request is simple, create just one disabled parking space in this street, or one nearby.

Haiti declares a state of emergency following the assassination of President Jovenel Moise with the First Lady also wounded in the shooting. 

The murder of the political leader who governed for more than four years has drew condemnation from around the world.

Haiti, already in a precarious political situation before the assassination, has grown unstable after the country failed to hold elections and the opposition party demanding his resignation.

The assassination risks further destabilising the Caribbean nation.

Thousands of healthcare and frontline workers marched in New York City on Wednesday in a ticker-tape parade honouring their work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio declared “We've got a lot to appreciate, because we're well underway in our recovery."

Those honoured at the parade included nurses and doctors, emergency crews, bus drivers and train operators, teachers and utility workers.