It is with a sense of vexation that I rise to speak in support of this bill to ban the Nazi salute in Victoria – vexation because in our modern multicultural state, a state which prides itself on equality and respect, it is nevertheless apparent that we are again having to strengthen our laws simply to ensure Victorians can live free of bigotry, hate and violence. Last year I was proud to speak in support of the ban on Nazi symbols, a historic moment for our government and a first for Australia as together we stood up to send a clear message to those who seek to divide, intimidate and harm our peaceful way of life. Together we said to people who would brandish the Nazi swastika, ‘You don’t get to show off your hatred. You don’t get to make others fearful. You don’t get to glorify violence and tyranny and genocide – not in this state.’
At the time I related the story of my father-in-law Joel Margolis. Joel was a Jewish boy living in Warsaw with his family when Germany invaded Poland, and his narrow escape from the Holocaust meant that he was ultimately able to migrate to Australia, make an extraordinary contribution to medical research and become a dad to my husband Julian. His story is part of the history of our family, and when our girls are old enough to understand, my husband Jules and I will take the time to explain to them how their grandfather fled his home to escape a hate so strong it could not even see him as human.
Around two-thirds of Europe’s Jewish population died during the Holocaust – 6 million people, many in extermination camps or in mass shootings, many after months or years of forced labour, torture and deprivation. As others have noted, millions more were persecuted and killed based on their ethnicity, their religion, their political beliefs and their sexuality. That darkness can never and should never be forgotten, so when it rears its ugly head, its hateful head, in our communities there is only one way we can respond, and that is to stand up and say no. Because racism is an insidious evil in whatever form it takes. Whether subtle or overt, it erodes our humanity. And as individuals, as a collective and as legislators, it is our moral responsibility to speak up and stand against racism, discrimination and injustice when we see it.
This Parliament has been at the forefront of passing legislation that affirms all Victorians’ rights to feel accepted, safe, free to be who they are and free to speak their truth. Whether it is through our ban on conversion therapy, whether it is through Safe Schools, whether it is through adoption equality, treaty or stronger anti-discrimination laws, Labor has made it a pillar of our values and our identity to acknowledge past trauma, stand up against intimidation and hate and stare down the evil ideologies that seek to scapegoat minorities.
Some of this may seem abstract, but it is not. Others have spoken already about the horrific scenes outside our Parliament when a cowardly group of neo-Nazis decided to target the transgender community with their hateful acts. Immediately following these events our government denounced these behaviours in the strongest terms and committed to expanding our nation-leading legislation banning the Nazi Hakenkreuz to include the Nazi salute. That is exactly what we are doing, because every part of our state and every person in our state should be safe from bigotry and hateful ideologies, and what happened last year was not an isolated incident.
We have seen the neo-Nazis show up at trans story times. We have seen them scrawl antisemitic messages across our city. We have seen them mixing and blurring with the anti-vax movement to sow disinformation. Close to home, in my electorate of Northcote, we have experienced the anger and audacity of these extremist groups firsthand. In 2021, 31 anti-vax protesters were arrested for rioting through Northcote Plaza, terrorising families and children, workers and shoppers. During my election campaign, billboards across the electorate were defaced with Nazi symbols and words, an affront to our very democracy. And just a few weeks ago a group of neo-Nazis armed with knives, clad in black and wearing balaclavas took it upon themselves to violently descend on a cafe in High Street, Thornbury. These are brazen acts of intimidation, and they are disturbingly on the rise not just in Australia but across the world. We cannot allow this kind of fascism to take root in our society.
ASIO continues to assess Australia’s terrorism threat level. Disturbingly they report:
Ideologically motivated violent extremism – and particularly nationalist and racist violent extremism – remains a threat to Australian security and its adherents will continue to engage in offensive behaviours … ASIO remains concerned about the potential for these groups to radicalise individuals …
particularly through the use of social media. There is the risk that these individuals can then go on to undertake attacks, potentially without warning.
We may not be privy to it, but we know that encrypted channels buzz daily with the divisive rhetoric of the far-right movement, drawing more and more people into their vortex of hate. Heartbreakingly, the individuals being targeted for radicalisation are often some of the most disadvantaged in our society, and this vulnerability is deliberately preyed on as they stoke feelings of disillusionment and anger. Around the world we are seeing these highly organised far-right movements gain traction and start shaping the policies of the traditionally mainstream right. It is happening in the US, in the UK, and in more and more European countries, and Australia is not immune. Victoria is not immune. So I am pleased to see the bipartisan support from the opposition for this bill and the dignity of the debate today.
This bill bans the public display or performance of any symbol or gesture used by the Nazi party and its paramilitary arms. It forms part of a package of anti-vilification reforms to address hate speech and hate conduct in Victoria, reforms which have been developed in response to the parliamentary inquiry into Victoria’s anti-vilification protections. The abhorrent performance of the Nazi salute has no place in Victoria and has indeed been banned in numerous other countries with the understanding of the weight these gestures carry and the history they evoke.
This bill explicitly prohibits the Nazi salute alongside the existing prohibition on the Hakenkreuz. Despite what the member for Malvern argued in his speech and with his amendments, the bill does not require an explicit clause to give the police the power to direct someone to cease the Nazi gesture. This is because, by virtue of creating an offence to perform this gesture, the police have the ability to intervene in the performance of what will be an offence in action, just as the police are able to intervene in other offences in action, whether that be a carjacking, public exposure or any other offence you can think of. They will have the power to ask a person to cease and will further have the power to arrest that person and charge them.
I do want to note, as I did when we banned the public display of the Hakenkreuz, that there will be a range of exceptions to the offence which relate to genuine cultural, religious, educational and artistic purposes. This is also not intended to capture innocent gestures like simply hailing a cab. Context and intent will be important.
We wish that making these laws was not necessary, but beyond that wish is our resolve to always tackle antisemitism, hatred and racism head-on. I never want to see the kinds of behaviours we saw at the front of Parliament again – shameful and cowardly public demonstrations of hate and bigotry designed only to cause fear, pain and division. If this bill goes some way to preventing that and preventing the harm it inflicts on our community, then it is worthy of our support.
In the minutes I have left I want to thank our parliamentary colleagues who have stood up today to speak in favour of this bill. It is not easy subject matter, and for those with personal stories and connections to the Holocaust or indeed any form of genocide it takes a toll. The impact of traumatic events in history does not go away. They reverberate through time, through generations and across continents. So when those experiences are weaponised against people, when they are used to intimidate and silence and tell parts of our community that they are wrong simply for being who they are, there is scarcely anything more vicious. That is why this bill is so important. It sends a message in Victoria that we will not accept any part of our community being threatened, taunted and vilified just for being who they are. The diversity of our state is our greatest asset. Our peaceful way of life is precious. Our democracy is precious. Authoritarianism and fascism have no place here. I commend this bill to the house.
