MADDY BLAY: the Greens cohort showed the strongest rejection of stereotypical statements about Jews and the Holocaust
ONE OF THE MOST notable discoveries from the Crossroads21 survey into Australian attitudes to Jewish people, antisemitism and Israel concerns the responses from Greens voters towards antisemitism and the Holocaust.
Out of the two major and minor Australian political parties, the Greens cohort showed the strongest rejection of stereotypical statements about Jews and the Holocaust.
The Jewish community’s attitude to the Greens is perceived as hesitant at best, and vicious, baseless and violent at worst, a view largely attributed to the party’s policies towards Israel and Palestine and Australian foreign policy.
Dr David Zyngier, one of the first Jewish people to be elected as a Green in Australia, as a councillor with Glen Eira City Council, recounts his 2020 campaign: “I was frequently attacked as a self-hating Jew on various Jewish social media.”
Notably, he was elected with 14% of the primary vote in one of the most Jewish local government wards in the country.
While Crossroads21 does not explain the vitriol directed at the Greens, their Jewish supporters and candidates, it does debunk claims that the Greens are antisemitic.
While the Crossroads21 report does not explain the extent of vitriol directed at the Greens and even their Jewish supporters and candidates, it does debunk claims that the Greens are antisemitic, with Greens voters most strongly rejecting negative stereotypes about Jews.
Greens Senator Janet Rice who holds the party’s multicultural affairs portfolio notes that “these findings are heartening but not surprising. The study confirms that the Greens community is driven by our values of anti-racism, multiculturalism, and justice for all Australians."
In particular, the statement “Australian Jewish people chase money more than other Australian people” (p. 21) was responded to with either probably not true (35% of respondents), or definitely not true (48%), the latter figure more than double the next highest, that of Labor voters (28%).
Upon first reading, this set of data was in equal parts reassuring and shocking – the compassion that drives Greens voters is strongly reflected in these numbers, and yet there is undeniable confusion and upset that almost two thirds of interviewed Labor voters thought that there was a chance that Australian Jews chase more money than their non-Jewish counterparts.
On the question of Holocaust education, the statement “Jewish people talk about the Holocaust just to further their political agenda” was indicated to be ‘definitely not true’ by 66% of Greens voters, compared to 45% of Labor voters, and 37% of LNP voters. There is a multitude of reasons one could attribute to this response, from education to sense of social justice to cultural awareness.
However, the responses clearly show that the supporters of a party that bases its policies, decision-making and communities on grassroots democracy, social justice and peace and non-violence unsurprisingly and overwhelmingly reject antisemitic tropes and bigoted attitudes towards the Holocaust.
Equally of note, the study asked respondents about their view of banning the ‘Nazi symbol’, and Greens voters responded with a whopping 72% in agreement, the highest of the parties.
While discourse around the banning of extremist symbols remains highly energised in Australia, this research nonetheless points to a sentiment carried by left-wing voters that the (ever-growing) power of the far-right and white supremacist movements is dangerous and harmful.
Last month, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security conducted an inquiry into extremist movements and radicalisation in Australia, and found that “nationalist and racist violent extremists” have increased to a staggering 40% of the on-shore counter-terrorism caseload in Australia.
Along with the rising incidence of white supremacist activity in Victoria alone since the start of this year, the Jewish community is right to be concerned about the increasing threat of the far Right. It should come as reassuring that progressive voters strongly reject stereotypical statements of Jewish people (Greens 90%, Labor 81%, p. 21) and that antisemitism is taken seriously by them.
Considering the climate of a looming federal election, the research conducted in this study speaks volumes about the values held intrinsically by progressive voters. On an issue as important and emotional as this, the Jewish community cannot ignore where our allies sit on the political spectrum.
Disclosure: Maddy Blay is a member of the Australian Greens
