At a Just Peace meeting on October 20, it was proposed by Wade McDonald, a leader of the International Socialist Organisation, that all "paper selling" be banned outside an upcoming forum on Islamophobia co-hosted by Just Peace.
McDonald argued that those wanting to distribute newspapers be allowed to do so only after the meeting and that, contrary to a decades-long tradition at progressive meetings, only the forum organisers — Just Peace, Refugee Rights Action Network and the Curtin Centre for Human Rights Education — be allowed to have information stalls.
The forum, to be held at Curtin University, will examine the rising racism towards Arab people, Islamophobia and their connections with the so-called "war on terror". Supporters of Â鶹´«Ã½ Weekly have been involved in Just Peace since its formation during the recent round of rallies opposing Israel's invasion of Lebanon. I was Just Peace's chairperson at the September 23 International Day of Action for Peace and Justice rally.
As a proud supporter of Â鶹´«Ã½ Weekly and a founding member of Just Peace, I find it strange that others on the left want to limit the circulation of left-wing newspapers, including their own. This is also happening at a time when the Coalition government's new media ownership laws will spawn even greater media monopoly concentration, and when Howard's "anti-terror" laws and mainstream media are fanning racism and Islamophobia. Papers like Â鶹´«Ã½ Weekly are more indispensable than ever.
The progressive movements need to be supporting, not suppressing, the distribution of progressive, anti-war newspapers. Censorship, or a restriction on when alternative media can be distributed, simply aids those racists in Parliament House and their corporate media mates.
As George Orwell put it so well: "In times of universal deceit, telling the truth can be a revolutionary act". The more we tell the truth, the greater the opportunity to challenge that deceit.