Published: 21 October 2024
Last updated: 22 October 2024
The British Prime Minister Harold Wilson famously said, “a week is a long time in politics”.
What then to make of 52 weeks – an entire year – of politics in the shadow of October 7?
During October 2023, communal mourning and rally events were held at Caulfield Shule and Caulfield Park. There was a sense of shock and sorrow, but also unity and resilience.
Politicians spoke from both sides of the political divide with sympathy and solidarity. There was little thought of partisanship, why would there be?
In federal and state parliaments, bipartisan motions were passed by Labor governments with the support of Liberal oppositions, condemning the Hamas attack and expressing solidarity with both the Jewish state and the Jewish people.
October 7, 2023 does not feel like very long ago but that spirit of political unity does.
One year on, October 7, antisemitism and Israel have all become casualties of our domestic political fray.
Last week in federal parliament, a motion on the October 7 anniversary was the subject of a hyper-partisan political debate. Both the government and opposition put up their own motions, voting against each other’s, unable to find any bipartisan consensus on commemorating the date.
Many will try to apportion blame for this. I have no interest in doing so here. But I am saddened that it has come to this.
Comments6
Alison22 October at 10:19 am
Charlatan “leaders” are not in the Jewish communities interests. Times up Labor!
Rachel sussman22 October at 09:44 am
The good intention of this article is noted, nevertheless, I do not necessarily agree. We must never remain politically blind and follow the right or the left without an acknowledgement if what it stands for at any particular time.
I agree that any Government had the right to disagree with another Government actions, that is not a problem as such even if may be unpleasant. The problem here is that the Left in its present form and with its present actions goes far beyond simple ‘criticism’ and had gone into ‘blindness’ and disrespectful denial and betrayal. As a simple example, a foreign minister that goes on an official visit and refuses to go to the site of crime says a thousand words… likewise to refuse to condemn the actions of 7/10 without attaching such condemnation to anything else says a thousands words…
And I could go on…
I do not think we need to ‘grovel’ but rather protect our integrity… Personally, I feel that the PM sadly did not deserve an invitation ( even though I would never have approached him disrespectfully), and make no mistake about it, he did not attend in an attempt to show silent support, he attended for political purposes and as an attempt to repair the political damage he caused by betraying the loyalty of the Jewish community but worse still, by failing to stand by with what is morally right…
I have been a Left voter as a right voter, I choose depending on the leader, the direction he gives his Party, his integrity, the issues at hand and who can best attend to them, even if my personal ideology may be incluned more one way than the other. I sincerely hope that we all vote in such responsible manner and not out of ‘blind’ or ‘fixed’ loyalty…
Max22 October at 09:26 am
“If the left doesn’t want to see the Jewish community shift rightwards, it needs to lift its game. It needs to empathise with the legitimate grievances we have. It needs to acknowledge that the horrific situation Palestinians in Gaza face is neither our fault, nor within our control, and attempts to hold us responsible for war in the Middle East are plainly antisemitic.” This is certainly small minority opinion in Australia but it’s in no way a left wing opinion . The author offers absolutely no proof of this opinion being held on ‘the left’. If the author is referring to people criticising zionist organisations and activities for cheerleading for genocide that is another matter.
Janet Hiller22 October at 07:52 am
Thank you Dean. I was appalled by the ungracious comments made by a speaker at the Illuminate event. We were graced with the presence of a number of politicians – with the PM being singled out for hostile comment. Community spokespeople should be aware of the diversity of views within the community they are spokespeople for – to say nothing of what should be seen as just good manners.
David Jackson22 October at 06:49 am
Dean, I too, previously have been a part of Victoria’s left leaning political landscape. The Australian Jewish Community has always been fragmented covering a diverse range of political and religious views. I suggest reading “A Second Chance” by Taft and Markus as a good reference. It is not homogenous, it does not vote as a block for one party. Comprising less than 4% of the Australian population spread over a number of electorates it can hardly detemine much. Other than actually having had parliamentarians such as Frydenberg, Danby, Dryfus and Burns and staffers participating in the electoral process the community punches above it’s weight. It is not for the Jewish Left to lift its game for fear of the community lurching to the Right. People will be swayed by their values and socialisation. The Left in general also isn’t homogenous, it has difficulty dealing with which oppressed people do we support. The media’s portrayal of Israel’s blunt use of military force causing death and destruction is telling parts of the Left the Jews are no longer oppressed, but doing the oppressing of the Palestinians. The losers from the current conflict is the tragic loss of human life on both sides, for which the Jews (Israel) is largely blamed. To mis use a quote from the Conclave movie I just watched, Dean, this is a war and you have choose a side. I’m not and would never vote for Bibi if I were an Israeli. However, I do agree with Israel’s right to defend itself, protect it’s citizens as a sovereign nation. Otherwise it should take it’s proverbial bat and ball and go home. I enjoyed your article Dean.
David Milstein22 October at 06:08 am
This advice reminds me of the book by Rafael Medoff “The Jews should keep quiet-Franklin D. Roosevelt, Rabbi Stephen S. Wise and the Holocaust