Migrant communities ‘scapegoated’ after Bondi massacre
A prominent Jewish leader has argued that protest movements are being unfairly targeted and immigrant communities are being blamed in the wake of the Bondi massacre.
Speaking before the royal commission into anti-Semitism on Thursday, Sarah Schwartz, executive director of the Progressive Jewish Council of Australia, said political manipulation of the attack had scapegoated Palestinian and Muslim communities.
Much of the post-Bondi debate, he said, aimed to locate the source of anti-Semitism within immigrant and religious communities, leaving them to bear the weight of the actions of others.
“This sends a message not only to the wider Australian public, but also to Palestinian and Muslim communities that they must be held accountable for antisemitism in a way that no other community should be held to account,” he said.
The Jewish Council rejects antisemitism but says criticism of Israel, especially its government’s actions, is not the same thing.
Ms. Schwartz said her views on what antisemitism is have changed greatly as she has learned about Israel’s history.
“Many government and policy responses to antisemitism have focused on the fact that antisemitism fundamentally stems from the Palestinian solidarity movement,” he said.
“It is incredibly dangerous for the government to focus its response on Palestinian and Muslim communities and reactions.”
The third block of public hearings for the royal commission began 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 online hate.
Senior representatives from the Australian Federal Police and NSW, Victoria and WA forces are expected to testify on Thursday.
E-Safety commissioner Julie Inman Grant will also be present in the afternoon.
Social media, online hate and extremism experts revealed on Wednesday.
Andre Oboler of the Online Hate Prevention Institute, which has studied hate speech for more than a decade, said social media platforms X and Reddit removed less than a quarter of posts flagged as anti-Semitic.
Reddit wiped out 17 percent, while X fared slightly better at 24 percent.
YouTube, LinkedIn and Telegram all removed just over 40 percent.
TikTok, which flags less media than other platforms, deleted approximately 62 percent, while Facebook removed 54 percent.
Dr Oboler said AI presented new challenges as users could find relatively easy ways to bypass hate speech filters.
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