Former opposition leader Bill Shorten has criticised a “pile-on” against Australian Jews and says war in the Middle East has exposed latent antisemitic hatred which has left Jewish Australians feeling unsafe in their own country.
He says the hatred was stoked by “some protesters” and what has emerged since the Hamas raids on Israel and the subsequent attacks on Gaza shows one of the oldest hatreds in the world underlying Australian society.
In a broad interview on my podcast, Neil Mitchell Asks Why, Shorten also said Australia faced new challenges and needed to “step up a gear”, and that there was little room for debating big ideas in modern political life – a failing of both media and politicians.
He said he had previously thought “latent antisemitism” had gone in Australia, but Jewish Australians were not imagining it and urged non-Jews to call out the hatred.
His comments followed criticisms of some universities for being overly tolerant of antisemitic attacks and slow to criticise them.
Shorten, now vice chancellor of the University of Canberra, was asked on my podcast whether some tertiary institutions had been antisemitic in their reaction to the war.
“99.9 per cent of people at universities, I do not believe, are antisemitic,” he said.
“But I do believe some protesters and some people created an unsafe environment for Australians of Jewish heritage and that’s unacceptable.
“So yes, I do think there are some antisemites.”
Former opposition leader Bill Shorten has criticised a “pile-on” against Australian Jews. (Alex Ellinghausen)
Shorten said he believed the community and institutions had underestimated the latent antisemitism and been surprised as it surfaced.
“We’ve all been surprised, I certainly have, about how the debate after October 7 and the murder and massacres then sort of flipped to becoming a pile-on, not just about what you think about Israel, but now what you think about the Jewish people.
“This trope that somehow there’s a Jewish conspiracy manipulating a government – that is actually an antisemitic trope which is older than the Nazis.
“It’s been around thousands of years. It’s one of the oldest hates in the world and it’s just got a new form.”
He said he knew Jewish people who had plans to leave Australia, although they were Australian-born and it was their home.
“It’s legitimate to criticise a government of another country, including the government of Israel.
“But the directions in which a lot of these protests have gone has been about bringing overseas arguments to Australian and making Australians of Jewish heritage feel unsafe in their own country.
“That’s real. And it’s shocking and it’s unacceptable.
“It’s up to the rest of us to call it out … it shouldn’t just be left to Jewish Australians to defend themselves.”
Bill Shorten is now Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Canberra. (Alex Ellinghausen)
Shorten said he and others had stood up for Muslim Australians after the Christchurch massacre.
“There were a lot of Australians of Muslim heritage feeling frightened then and it was fair enough and it was terrible.
“But now it’s the turn of the Jewish Australians to feel frightened and their fears and desire for safety shouldn’t be disrespected because of conflicts elsewhere.
“No one should feel unsafe in this country because of their religion and when Jewish kids can’t wear their school uniforms after school then we’ve got to call it out.
“And it’s not just on Jewish Australians to do it. Everyone else has got to stand up for them.”
Shorten, who came within a whisker of being prime minister in 2019, said he was deeply hurt by the loss but has moved on well.
In the interview, he talks about universities playing a strong role in Australia’s future, making entry easier for older students, and warns Australia needs to “step up a gear”.
“The world’s changed. Our holiday from history is over.
“Since the end of the Cold War, Australia has had 30 years of, not too bad.
“We’ve relied on our distance from the rest of the world to keep us safe.
“I think our holiday from history is over. This country’s got to get a lot smarter quicker, a lot more agile, a lot more resilient.
“Defence expenditure will have to increase. Universities need to intellectually rearm and change some of the things we do here.
“I think this country needs to, like it or not, move up a gear.”
Shorten, a lifelong Victorian now living in Canberra, said he was worried about the state.
“I think Victoria’s a great state. I’ve lived in Melbourne my whole life and I think it’s a great city.
“But I think morale’s down, and we’ve got to try to lift it.”
Shorten also suggested the political process was staggering, which was a failing of both the media and politicians.
He said there was not a mood for discussing big ideas and agreed perhaps his own policies and vision had cost him power.
So after a lifetime in politics, and within a sniff of being PM, what matters today to Australians?
“Cost of living, cost of living, probably in families,” he said.
“The other thing would be the wellbeing of their kids.”
