AIJAC addresses antisemitism in Australia at annual global forum
Joel Burnie has spoken at the American Jewish Committee’s annual event, where he detailed the growing challenges faced by Australian Jews and criticised the government’s response.
Executive manager of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) Joel Burnie has joined Jewish leaders from around the world in New York to speak at the American Jewish Committee’s (AJC) annual Global Forum. The event, a leading international gathering of Jewish policymakers, activists, and thought leaders, focused heavily on the global impact of the October 7, 2023, terror attacks.
Speaking on a panel examining how Jewish communities worldwide are responding in the aftermath of the attacks, Burnie delivered a stark assessment of conditions in Australia.
“The fact that I’m sitting here on this stage right now talking about an antisemitism crisis is in stark contrast to what we all thought Australia was for Jews… a haven,” Burnie told the forum audience.
He described Australia’s Jewish community as being “under siege” in the wake of the Hamas massacre, noting both a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents and a deteriorating political climate for supporters of Israel.
“Since October 7, in every single aspect of Australian society, Jews have really come up against it. So, it’s a significantly deeper problem than just anti-Zionism. Australia has an antisemitism problem,” he said.
Burnie said that prior to the attacks, antisemitism in Australia felt largely contained. However, “when Hamas terrorists crossed into Israel, that box was unfortunately opened.”
He said that antisemitic incidents began to escalate “literally in the hours, not days” following the terror attacks.
Burnie was also critical of the Australian Government’s response. He said that since taking office in 2022, the Albanese Government had overseen a “steady departure” from the country’s “longstanding bipartisan positions” on Israel. He said this shift left the Government unprepared to address the gravity of the antisemitic surge.
“They failed to recognise the gravity of the antisemitic problem in time,” he said.
“As a result, the Government’s initial response was ineffective… which allowed the problem to fester and essentially put the Jewish community under siege.”
Despite these challenges, Burnie expressed admiration for the spirit of resilience shown by both Australian Jews and Israelis.
“In the face of it all, we have drawn strength, resilience, determination, and grit from the example of Israelis on October 7,” he said.
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