Rallying against antisemitism
Organiser Mark Leach cited statistics showing a staggering 738 per cent surge in antisemitic attacks since the October 7 atrocities.
A rally in support of Jews by various ethnic and religious communities in Melbourne will be held this Sunday, May 19.
The “Stop the Hate, Mate” event gets underway at the steps of State Parliament at 1.30pm. Organisers say it has attracted support from Christians, Greeks, Iranians, Indigenous Australians, Italians, Vietnamese, Indians, Assyrians, Persians, Hindus and others.
Organiser Mark Leach cited statistics showing a staggering 738 per cent surge in antisemitic attacks since the October 7 atrocities.
“Whatever one’s views on the Middle East conflict, there’s no justification for the hate being inflicted on our Jewish community,” he said.
The event has attracted strong support from Jewish organisations, including the Rabbinic Council of Victoria (RCV).
RCV president Rabbi Moshe Kahn said, “We’ve got to make sure that we are front and centre with an incredible show of solidarity from the broader community. It’s good to get support from outside the Jewish community because we haven’t seen a lot of it recently.”
Rev John Smith from the Iranian Church for Christ said the Iranian people do not support their government.
“And we know every problem now in Israel and in the Middle East, [is] coming from the Iranian government. We must support the Jewish people and fix this problem,” he said.
Jasmine Yuen from the Australian Christian Lobby said the antisemitism that’s erupted since October 7 is unacceptable in Victoria, the most multicultural state in Australia.
“Day after day we see how hatred is targeting the Jewish community in Melbourne and across Australia, no one group, one race, one religion should be targeted. So [as] Christians, we need to stand up,” she said.
State MPs were scheduled to come together on the steps of State Parliament on Wednesday to support Sunday’s rally.
It was organised by co-convenors of the Victorian Parliamentary Friends of Israel, David Southwick, Liberal MP for Caulfield and Paul Hamer, Labor MP for Box Hill.
Hamer said, “The rise in antisemitism that we have witnessed in recent months goes against everything we pride ourselves on as a multicultural society.”
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