Groups promoting right wing extremism, like the Antipodean Resistance and the Lads Society, have recently dominated headlines, but they are far from the sum of the extreme right in Australia.
Attacking Erdoğan’s original comments, Morrison told a news conference they were “highly offensive to Australians and highly reckless in this very sensitive environment”.
The recent massacre at a New Zealand mosque is a traceable, direct outgrowth of an American white nationalist movement that insists immigrants and people of color are a threat to ‘white civilization.’
It’s distressing to see reports of terrorist attacks but these feelings will usually abate over days or weeks. But people with a history of trauma need to take extra care of their mental health.
It’s time for social media platforms to be more open about how livestreaming works, how it is moderated, and what should happen if or when the rules break down.
When the media genuinely behave badly, this should be called out by politicians. But doing so through the courts is not a good idea, nor conducive to democracy.
Until social platforms improve filtering of extremist content, we all have a role to play in ensuring our online activities don’t contribute to a spectacle society that rewards terrorists with clicks.
In his address in the wake of the New Zealand attack, on the theme of managing differences, Morrison said it was not a matter of “disagreeing less, but disagreeing better”.
The Senate doesn’t have the power to throw him out, but it would be a bad course anyway, setting an unfortunate precedent as well as making him a martyr in the eyes of the extreme right.
There is deep sadness in the Christchurch attacks, but little shock. We need to address the permissive political environment that allows such hateful extremism to be promulgated so openly.
Research shows that many members of dominant groups perceive minorities and immigrant groups as a threat, which builds up to fear and hate. We can all do something to change that.