Chris Peterson
In recent years, the Australian ruling class has waged a campaign to whip up racism and Islamophobia. This is reflected in the bipartisan support for the mandatory detention of refugees, Australian support for the so-called "war on terror" and the federal and state "anti-terror" laws, which are aimed at criminalising dissent.
Stoking racism and dehumanising Muslims and Arabs helps the government justify its participation in the US-led war on Iraq. It also divides the Australian working class, weakening resistance to the government's attacks on our rights at work and our right to voice dissent.
According to Melbourne Resistance organiser Brianna Pike, "This rise in racism has a real impact on people's lives. From racial profiling by police to racist harassment in schools and in the workplace. We need to counter this by mobilising community opposition to racism and by explaining the links between the Howard government's anti-worker policies and its racist fearmongering."
On April 1, the Socialist Alliance, which Resistance is affiliated to, initiated a rally in defence of migrant communities in Melbourne's Moreland area. The demonstration was supported by the Victorian Trades Hall Council and the Greens. Protesters marched through the streets chanting, "Migrants are welcome, racists are not!", and received great support from passers-by and shopkeepers.
The Socialist Alliance is organising another anti-racism rally in the Melbourne suburb of Footscray on Saturday May 20 at noon. The rally will begin at Nicholson Street mall. In Sydney, a Socialist Alliance-initiated rally against racism will be held in Auburn on June 3. These community rallies can be important demonstrations of solidarity and a loud rejection of racism.
[For more information about the Melbourne rally, phone Ben on (03) 9639 8622 or 0413 580 706. For information on the Sydney protest, phone Simon on (02) 9690 1977.]
From Â鶹´«Ã½ Weekly, April 26, 2006.
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