Mayors summit against antisemitism opens on the Gold Coast
The antisemitism summit opened with Nova Peris and survivor Robert Singer sharing powerful personal stories.
More than 200 mayors, councillors and community leaders from across Australia have gathered on the Gold Coast for the 2025 Australian Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism.
The three-day summit, organised by the US-based Combat Antisemitism Movement, opened on Tuesday night with addresses from former Olympic sprinter and Indigenous leader Nova Peris and Holocaust survivor Robert Singer.
Peris, a former Labor senator, delivered an impassioned speech drawing parallels between Indigenous Australian and Jewish experiences of dispossession.
“The Jewish people are indigenous to the land of Israel. That is a truth. The Jewish people have stood with us. That is a truth,” she said.
She highlighted historical solidarity, referencing Aboriginal leader William Cooper’s 1938 protest at the German consulate in Melbourne and Jewish barrister Ron Castan’s work with Eddie Mabo in overturning terra nullius.
“When antisemitism rises there and here, it dishonours Jewish Australians and the sacrifice of all our war veterans,” Peris said. “It dishonours the truth of who we are as a country.”
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate, who is hosting the summit, defended his city’s friendship with Israel following recent council protests.
At a council meeting several months ago, Tate moved motions to maintain the city’s sister agreement with Israeli city of Netanya and the naming of Netanya Park.
“We are in there for the long run,” Tate told delegates, noting Netanya is “probably the only city in Australia that has a sister agreement with an Israeli city.”
Robert Singer, representing the Combat Antisemitism Movement Board of Governors, told delegates his family’s Holocaust survival story shaped his life’s work.
“My mother fled across the border in 1941 escaping the Nazis and their collaborators. Four of her sisters, her parents, and much of her community never made it,” he said.
Singer outlined four key objectives for delegates: building permanent channels between municipal authorities and police, adopting formal definitions of antisemitism at the city level, creating local task forces to ensure incidents are prosecuted, and establishing working relationships with Jewish communities.
Beverly Hills Mayor Sharona Nazarian, who fled Iran due to religious persecution, spoke to delegates about her experience hosting a similar summit in California.
“The real measure of this summit will be what we do when we leave this room,” she said.
The summit features Australia’s Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism Jillian Segal as a headline speaker and includes practical workshops to help councils develop responses to antisemitism, including reporting protocols and community engagement strategies.
The summit aims to provide councils with practical tools to address antisemitism and strengthen community relations, focusing on education, policy development and bridge-building initiatives that can be implemented at the local level.
Organisers emphasise the summit’s focus on bringing together diverse community leaders to develop strategies that promote social cohesion and protect all residents from hate.
The event has attracted some criticism from pro-Palestinian groups, with Greens Deputy Leader Senator Mehreen Faruqi calling for local government representatives to boycott the summit.
The Australian Friends of Palestine Association questioned the event’s agenda, while several councils including Greater Dandenong and Casey have declined to attend.
The summit continues until Friday, with delegates expected to develop concrete action plans for addressing antisemitism and promoting inclusive communities across Australia.
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