This is a fight for our national values
This is not the Sydney, nor Australia, we should accept or condone.
In January the world stopped to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camp, Auschwitz.
It was a sombre reminder of the great evil humans are capable of, and a celebration of the triumph of the human spirit over bitter adversity.
It is sobering to remember that all this hatred and death began with simple acts of graffiti on walls and shopfronts in Berlin in the 1930s. “Juden” – Jews – the painted words often read; the first pebbles in an avalanche of evil and murder.
That is why it is so scary for communities to see that same sort of graffiti return to homes, shopfronts, places of worship and even childcare centres 80 years on – “F**k Jews”; “Kill Israel”; “Jew Dogs” and worse.
These slogans are not being painted on the shopfronts of Berlin. They are being sprayed on the walls of suburban Sydney. Places like Woollahra, Queens Park, Rose Bay, Maroubra, Newtown and more.
This is not the Sydney we all call home. A place where a particular demographic marked by their heritage and faith are afraid to travel in parts of our city for fear of being accosted. Where our community goes to bed wondering if they will wake up and find their car torched, or foul slogans sprayed across their homes. Where children are carefully escorted to and from their schools to ensure their safety.
This is not the Sydney, nor Australia, we should accept or condone.
Local councils across Sydney are trying our best to build social cohesion but we can only do so much.
In February 2025, over 20 mayors released the “Mayors of Sydney Joint Statement on Social Cohesion”. The Statement established a platform for a combined effort and the shared responsibility of all local governments to find practical ways to promote unity. It was a desperate shame that Sydney’s lord mayor Clover Moore, did not attend.
We are working with Jillian Segal, Australia’s special envoy to combat antisemitism, and local schools to help students understand what antisemitism looks like, its impact on individuals, families and entire communities and to the true horrors that can eventuate if vilification and antisemitism are not rooted out.
Photo: Screenshot
Unfortunately, local councils feel like it is a fight we have been left to make on our own.
The NSW government’s recent hate speech legislation was a welcome step, but it felt like very little, very late. The new laws to combat hate speech have come more than 16 months after the state government and the Minister for Police failed to properly intervene in an abominable protest on the Opera House steps, where an Israeli flag was burned as police officers looked on.
The protest at this iconic Australian landmark was the spark that has ignited racial hatred across our suburbs.
The response has been far weaker from the federal Labor government. The Albanese government has offered platitudes and handwringing, yet at the same time accuses anyone who asks why the government will not do more of “weaponising antisemitism”.
The performance of the teals has been even worse. While there was bipartisanship in federal Parliament in voting for mandatory minimum sentences for acts of terrorism, a block of teals voted with the Greens against the legislation.
What a slap in the face to Jewish communities across Australia that are struggling to overcome this antisemitic scourge.
We need more than just words from our governments.
We need funding to help develop on-ground programs to combat vilification and antisemitism. Funding to develop educational initiatives like workshops, inter-school forums, lectures and grants to empower young people to become active participants in creating a more cohesive society.
Councils cannot make this fight by ourselves, nor should we. This is a fight for our national values, and we need state and federal representatives who are strong enough to lead the charge.
Sarah Swan is mayor of Woollahra Municipal Council.
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