For the first time in my life, I won’t vote Labor

I am a third-generation Jewish ALP member.

For the first time in my life, I will not vote for the Australian Labor Party this election. Neither will my parents or brother.

I believe in the values and promise the Party offers, but I cannot give Anthony Albanese my vote.

From the Prime Minister dismissing the act of bearing witness at the kibbutzim and Nova sites in southern Israel as a “photo op” to Labor MPs treating Jewish constituents—in many cases those who have long been loyal Labor voters—with indifference at best, I have felt little warmth or care from the party I have supported for years.

Penny Wong’s reversal on long-standing foreign policy positions, despite assurances to Australian progressive Zionists that such shifts would not happen under any circumstances, was the final straw.

I have long suspected that the Prime Minister has little regard for our community. Normally, I would set this aside in favor of my broader commitment to equality, equity, and social democracy. But I cannot do so while I legitimately fear for my child every time I leave him at his Jewish daycare.

I hope the Labor Party returns to its historic role as a supporter of liberal Zionism and a staunch opponent of Soviet-era anti-Zionism (i.e., antisemitism), as it was in the 1960s. Only then can I continue my family’s tradition of membership and support for the Labor movement in this country.

Until that day comes, my vote will be an intentional ‘donkey vote.’