Has Australia betrayed our grandparents?

Following the announcement of a federal Royal Commission on antisemitism in the wake of the Bondi terror attack, our community contributed over 14,000 written submissions.

For many, writing those submissions was cathartic. Since October 7, we remain deeply traumatised, struggling with a profound sense of abandonment and isolation. Our distress is two-tiered.

We have been forced to endure the weekly protests, the university encampments, the persistent vandalism. At the same time, we have had to grapple with the fundamental question: is Australia permanently changed? Is this still our Australia?

Most of Australia’s Jews are the descendants of European refugees – people who fled the pogroms and death camps of Europe. They came to Australia believing it was a country not stained with the same Jew hatred as their birthplace.

And for several decades, Australia delivered on its promise. The country remained a safe place where Jews could excel across every domain. That is partly why the last two-and-a-half years have been so devastating.