‘Cool tattoo’ comments levelled at dead Jewish grandma
A human rights lawyer has revealed she was subjected to a barrage of anti-Semitic comments while trying to sell her late grandparents’ house.
The man, known by the pseudonym ACH and featured in a 2024 news article about the home’s “unique features,” described an investigation into anti-Semitism.
The article stated that his family was Jewish, and as a result, dozens of comments were made.
Some were positive, but others, like “I heard he had a cool tattoo,” were directed at his dead grandmother, a Holocaust survivor.
“This was a very sad and confronting situation,” he said.
“That’s a very offensive comment.”
The third block of the royal commission into public antisemitism began in Sydney on Monday, focusing on the treatment of Jewish people in mainstream and social media.
The ABC and SBS will attend the hearings later, as will dozens of Australians who have been subjected to hate online.
Experts also detailed in the investigation how vitriol was spread.
Matteo Vergani, an expert in the field, said social media users who engage in anti-Semitic conspiracy theories are more likely to post posts containing hate speech.
A Deakin University associate professor has called for hate “clusters” to be targeted, saying it would be a more effective way of removing anti-Semitic content from online spaces.
“Trying to address hateful posts one by one is like emptying the sea with a spoon because there are so many,” he said.
“So the only way to have a cost-effective intervention is to identify clusters.
“It’s a great opportunity for us to start monitoring online hate with a stable infrastructure, because if we understand how hate spreads, we can actually intervene in the most effective and cost-effective way, without the need for censorship or other harsh and draconian interventions.”
Experts on social media, online hate and extremism, including academic Andre Oboler, who served on Australia’s delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, will testify at the royal commission on Monday.
University of Sydney academics Terry Flew and Rob Nicholls, who research news and social media regulations, and British researcher Hannah Rose, who focuses on anti-Semitism and right-wing extremism, will also attend the fair.
