Acts of violence, hate and discrimination are abhorrent and have no place in our society. These acts are unequivocally condemned. Every day, individuals, families, and communities from diverse backgrounds are being targeted and exposed to hate crimes and slurs. ACOSS stands in solidarity with all communities affected.
Civil society leaders across Australia are working hard to provide clear advice to political leaders on the action needed to strengthen social cohesion and tackle racism, antisemitism and Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia and other forms of hatred and social exclusion. That advice must be urgently actioned.
We call on all our political leaders to embrace the National Anti-Racism Framework's recommendations and strongly stand by basic human rights. We should be defending international human rights standards, not passing legislation like the recent Migration Bills and laws that further criminalise children which are clearly contrary to these global standards.
We should be affirming the sovereignty of First Nations people through treaties and truth-telling, not abolishing Truth telling processes and refusing to stand by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander national flags. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags are powerful symbols of respect for the traditional owners of this land and should be embraced, not rejected.
With the further revelations today of hate crimes against the LGBTIQA+ communities, we also urge cross-party political support for the establishment of a national taskforce to tackle hate crimes, homophobia and transphobia in our communities.
We caution political leaders against actions that fuel hate and discrimination in our communities and reject any use of these events to further stoke social division.
ACOSS is determined to do all it can to play our part bringing communities together, building bridges and crossing divides. We call on all political leaders to do the same. It is our collective responsibility to ensure our communities are safe and that basic human rights are protected.
