Activism In Australia Research Articles

“A Roar of Rage”, “Toddlers with Guns” and “Eternal Bloody Protest”: some First Nations peoples’ perceptions about #BlackLivesMatter activism in Australia

ABSTRACT This article explores the experiences of First Nations participants as the #BlackLivesMatter protests burst onto Australian mainstream and social media platforms and onto Australian streets in 2020. We explore First Nations participants’ perceptions about the significance and relevance of #BlackLivesMatter in Australia to support First Nations existing political campaigns to address structural racism and settler colonialism in the Australian context. We consider the twin structures of racism and settler colonialism to comparatively analyse the historical experiences of First Nations, in Australia and the US, and Black people in the US in an effort to understand convergences and divergences in the contemporary activist imperatives and aspirations of each group. We conclude by acknowledging that while #BlackLivesMatter activism does have the potential to productively complement First Nations anti-racism activist imperatives and aspirations, it falls short of addressing First Nations anti-colonial imperatives and aspirations.

Does Curriculum Fail Indigenous Political Aspirations? Sovereignty and Australian History and Social Studies Curriculum

Through analysis of curricular materials (syllabus documents and supplementary readers) from the late-nineteenth century to the present, this article explores the role of school curriculum in shaping understandings of Indigenous political aspirations in the Australian context. It juxtaposes curricular materials with significant occasions of Indigenous political activism in Australia since the late-nineteenth century: the Coranderrk campaign of the 1870-80s, the Wave Hill Walk Off in 1966, the establishment of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in 1972, and the Bicentenary protests of 1988. From this analysis, five narrative sub-themes were developed—Invisibility, Benevolence, Obfuscation, Innocence, and Acknowledgement—which captured the ways that Indigenous sovereignty, nationhood, and political legitimacy had been represented. In drawing out some continuities and changes to curricular representations of First Nations’ and settler sovereignty, nationhood, and political legitimacy over a one hundred year period, this article highlights the uneven ways that curriculum has, and continues to, represent political possibilities on the Australian continent. This article offers insights for Nordic contexts where there are also contests about legacies of colonialism in the public sphere, including in education.

The AGM as a site of contestation: evaluating the tactics of environmental shareholder activists

ABSTRACT The politics of climate change in Australia remains highly fraught, this is despite the country experiencing acute impacts of a changing climate including mega-fires, floods, and severe and prolonged drought. Government inaction has led to limited market signals encouraging producers or consumers to move away from carbon intensive energy production to clean energy. In the absence of regulation, Australian shareholder activists are engaging directly with company boards and executives to reform corporate behaviour. This engagement, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) shareholder activism, has proliferated since 2017, much later than in comparable jurisdictions. Activists have targeted the mining, oil and gas, and finance sectors, due to their contribution to the Australian economy and their direct impact on global emissions. This paper explores the reasons for, and the implications of, the growth in ESG shareholder activism in Australia. It argues that the emergence of this activism in Australia was delayed due to complexities in the country's corporations' law. Regulatory attempts at stymying ESG shareholder activism resulted in the emergence of a duopoly of actors, at the cost of broader investor and civil society engagement. It is concluded that the rise of ESG shareholder activism in Australia is linked to growing tension between societal expectations, regulation, and the behaviour of firms. And, that ESG activists have been successful in leveraging this tension. There is evidence that large corporates have responded to activist claims, rendering this form of activism a potentially effective method for addressing some of the most pressing issues facing society.

From Fake News to Echo-Chambers: On The Limitations of New Media for Environmental Activism in Australia, and “Activist-Responsive Adaptation”

ABSTRACT For environmental activism, new media are now essential campaign tools to better protect the environment and enhance sustainability. The literature, however, poses some limitations for such purpose. Prominently, increasing concentration of new media ownership, and government digital surveillance; also ones of communication. Given little attention to new media limitations for Australian environmental activism or internationally, our focus was to better understand how Australian activists perceived and responded to these limitations on the effectiveness of their activism. Analysis involved interviews with activists regarding Australia-wide fracking and old-growth forest logging campaigns. Activists brushed aside surveillance due to the democratic legitimacy of their activities, also media concentration as an issue beyond them to address with any immediacy. Instead, they focussed on immediate practical issues around communication effectiveness, including new media information overload, fake news, digital echo-chambers, and trolls. In response to these issues, we identified an “activist-responsive adaptation” strategic approach that sought to both limit such intrusions and adapt communication to more effectively engage with audiences. More broadly, to address these issues and the bigger ones of surveillance and media concentration, socially responsible regulation of new media technology and communication was suggested.

Deinstitutionalisation and mental health activism in Australia: emerging voices of individuals with lived experience of severe mental distress, 1975–1985

Starting in the 1960s, large numbers of patients in Australia’s mental hospitals were released even though hardly any support services were available in the community. By the 1970s, a small number of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, volunteers, and consumer advocates were building alliances and coalitions with each other and with politicians and health bureaucrats to realise change. Using archival records and interviews as sources, we analyse how, in the early 1980s, Simon Champ, Meg Smith, and Janet Meagher, three pioneering Australian consumer advocates, started to speak out and influence discussions about mental health policy. They were also invited to join boards of non-government organisations in mental health care, foreshadowing later developments. Today, the participation of consumers of mental health care in mental health services is taken for granted and mandated, and most services have consumer advisory groups.

The teacher educator and the suffragist: Lillian de Lissa and Muriel Matters’ activism in Australia and the United Kingdom

ABSTRACT Focusing on the transnational circulation of ideas about suffrage and education, this article explores the work of suffragist Muriel Matters (1877–1969), and teacher educator Lillian de Lissa (1885–1967). It begins with Matters’ and de Lissa’s childhoods and education in post-suffrage Australia, and their initial work as an actress and kindergarten teacher respectively. The second section focuses on the development of their politics when Matters migrated to England in 1905 and joined the Women’s Freedom League, and de Lissa became the foundation principal of the Adelaide Kindergarten Training College in 1907. The third section discusses their engagement with Maria Montessori’s educational approach, which Matters incorporated into her socialist feminist activism during the First World War, and which led to de Lissa’s recruitment to England as a liberal feminist teacher educator in 1917. The final section highlights their advocacy for Montessori education in the United Kingdom during the interwar years.

Judicial Activism and Constitutional (Mis) Interpretation

In this article, the authors explore the concept of judicial activism and its application in the Australian domestic cases of Australian Capital Television Pty Ltd v Commonwealth and Love v Commonwealth, and in the US case of Obergefell v Hodges. The article highlights the devastating effects of judicial activism on legal interpretation, arguing that such activism compromises the doctrine of separation of powers and affects the realisation of the rule of law, resulting in a method ofinterpretation that incorporates personal biases and political opinion, thus ignoring the original intent of the framers of the Australian Constitution. Moreover, the article highlights that implementing a federal Bill of Rights might further exacerbate these ongoing problems concerning judicial activism in Australia.

Korean Migrants’ Transnational Activism in Australia: Collective Meaning Making around Human Rights

Korean Migrants’ Transnational Activism in Australia: Collective Meaning Making around Human Rights

Legal Coherence and Judicial Activism in Australia

The principle of legal coherence and the role of judicial activism are active but controversial topics in in Australian common law. Usually, the application of the principle of legal coherence lead to a different award compared to judicial activism. Both of them have contradiction and restrict mutually, which have their own implications but safeguard the judicial system to develop cautiously. So I would like to discuss the benefits and limitations of application of legal coherence and judicial activism by examples of HCA cases.

“Unstructured terrorism”? Assessing left wing extremism in Australia

ABSTRACT Left wing extremism (LWE) in Australia between 1968 and 1972 has been described inconsistently as either unstructured terrorism or protest activity. Schmid’s comprehensive work towards an academic consensus on terrorism definitions was applied to this Australian case study to try to sharpen the blurred lines between these two forms of political mobilisation. It is argued that while most LWE activity was protest activity, there were instances where the activity constituted terrorism due to its premeditated nature, risk to life, and threat-based communication. This has application to contemporary left wing activism in Australia and around the western world. Further examination of LWE mobilisation also demonstrates that the actors were likely organised in free-floating cells, capable of cooperation, but otherwise autonomous, thus establishing another precedent for left wing leaderless resistance. This challenges the notion that organisational decentralisation is a new element to contemporary terrorism.

“The NOSCA Mafia”: overseas student activism in Australia, 1985–1994

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to explore and analyse the history of the predominantly Malaysian Network of Overseas Students Collectives in Australia (NOSCA), that existed from 1985–1994.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on extensive archival research in the State Library of New South Wales, the National Library of Australia and the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Archives. It makes particular use of the UNSW student newspaper Tharunka and the NOSCA publications Truganini and Default. It also draws upon nine oral history interviews with former members of NOSCA.FindingsThe NOSCA was particularly prominent at the UNSW, building a base there and engaging substantially in the student union. Informed by anarchism, its activists were interested in an array of issues–especially opposition to student fees and in solidarity with struggles for democracy and national liberation in Southeast Asia, especially around East Timor. Moreover, the group would serve as a training ground for a layer of activists, dissidents and opposition politicians throughout Southeast Asia, with a milieu of ex-NOSCA figures sometimes disparagingly referred to as “the NOSCA Mafia.”Originality/valueWhile there has been much research on overseas students, there has been far less on overseas students as protestors and activists. This paper is the first case study to specifically hone in on NOSCA, one of the most substantial and left wing overseas student groups. Tracing the group's history helps us to reframe and rethink the landscape of student activism in Australia, as less white, less middle class and less privileged.

What Is “Labor” About Labor State Governments In Australia?

What Is “Labor” About Labor State Governments In Australia?

Migrant Radicalism and Activism in Australia: The Transnational Experience of Pierina Pirisi

ABSTRACTThis article examines the transnational experience of Italian-born Pietrina (“Pierina”) Pirisi, who took an active part in the communist and ethnic rights movements in Australia from 1972 until her return to Italy in 1984. For Pierina, the paths of migration, radicalism and activism intertwined when she moved from her native Sardinia to Sydney and joined the Communist Party of Australia, the Italian Communist Party in Australia, and the Italian Federation of Migrant Workers and their Families. Before emigrating, Pierina had begun developing a radical political awareness, which migration only strengthened. Through Pierina’s story, this article expands our understanding and traces the evolution of the involvement in far-left politics and community-based initiatives of newcomers from Italy who had experienced, or had been inspired by, the movements of “1968”. By shuttling between Australia and Italy’s communist experiences, Pierina’s story complicates our understanding of migrant activism, yet it enriches our knowledge by adding transnational, pre- and post-emigration elements to the history of the politicisation of migrants. This article demonstrates the value of a multifaceted approach to historical analysis and interpretation, and the engagement of multiple sources, from immigration and security files to oral history, when examining post-1968 political activism by and for migrants.

Exploring the meaning of pro-vaccine activism across two countries

While vaccine-critical activism has been widely documented and discussed, comparatively little has been said about the concerted response of pro-vaccine activists defending the majority view. This paper explores two case studies of pro-vaccine activism in Australia and the United States (US). It shows how pro-vaccine views and behaviours can take varying forms due to different aims and methods of engagement – oppositional counteractivities in favour of vaccination in Australia, and issue-based advocacy as part of a political alliance in the US. The focus in Australia comes from a pro-science stance and includes ‘skeptics’ against pseudoscience directly opposing vaccine-critical groups. In the US, the focus takes the form of an issue-specific campaign that has arisen from existing pro-vaccine parent blogs and discussion groups pushing for policy change rather than public confrontation. These case studies exemplify how pro-vaccine activism can take varying forms of either reinforcing the mainstream view or countering digression from it. Drawing on qualitative research, this paper aims to examine the types of practices and strategies employed by activists to voice their support of vaccination, and discusses the means, messages, and motivations of pro-vaccine activism. It ends with an argument for why a study – of public support for in addition to studying public opposition to vaccination – can help to better understand vaccination views and behaviours. These findings have wider implications for the study of counter-activism and the polarisation of civil society groups.

Twenty-First Century LGBTI Activism in Australia: The Limits of Equality

This article begins a history of twenty-first century LGBTI activism in Australia. It writes a history of the marriage equality campaign in Australia, which began in 2004 and achieved success in 2017, alongside a history of the LGBTI activism that supports asylum seekers, in particular those who seek asylum because of persecution on the basis of their sexuality. When juxtaposed to the narrative of the achievement of marriage equality, the account of the activism to support asylum seekers, a small and marginal part of the broader LGBTI movement, adds new insight into the political and discursive limits of the marriage equality movement. The article contributes to the historical literature about LGBTI politics in three ways. It writes a narrative of a little known strand of LGBTI politics, it grounds critical analysis of LGBTI politics in a historical narrative and it adds complexity to a history of the marriage equality campaign.

Why would we believe them? Meat consumers’ reactions to online farm animal welfare activism in Australia

ABSTRACTThe use of social media by animal activist organisations is of interest to those in the livestock production industries because of the perceived increased use and effectiveness of this medium for influencing consumers. Using qualitative data derived from focus groups and interviews, we explore how Australian meat consumers interact with animal welfare activism content posted to social media, either by activist organisations or members of the participants’ networks. Results indicate that meat consumers dismiss online animal welfare activism due to a perceived lack of credibility and being associated with a vegetarian or vegan ‘agenda’. Activists also were considered by participants to be ‘ignorant’, with participants suggesting they needed to experience animal farming first hand. Online activism was described as ‘slacktivism’ by our research participants, who felt that sharing something online does not create actual change in the real world and hence is not an authentic or meaningful form of activism. While farm animal welfare is of increasing concern to Australian consumers, this research suggests that information generated by activist organisations and shared via social media is unlikely to change meat eaters’ perceptions, at least in the current form in which it is being provided.

Activism and Australia's Ban on Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Military Service in the 1970s–80s

ABSTRACTThe 1970s witnessed the beginning of gay and lesbian visibility and activism in Australia. Law reform associations and liberation organisations emerged across the major cities, pushing numerous equality causes ranging from the rights of lesbian mothers to, most prominently, campaigns to decriminalise homosexual acts. One theme conspicuously low-key amidst this activism was the question of gay, lesbian and bisexual service in Australia's military. Longstanding regulations banned gays, lesbians and bisexuals from serving, and those who were caught were normally discharged. The services’ respective police and intelligence services also intermittently embarked on ‘witch-hunts’—practices which became even more pronounced in the 1980s. Though CAMP Inc sporadically addressed the ban on gay, lesbian and bisexual military service, discharged servicemen and women rarely took up the cause. This is in stark contrast to the United States, where there were numerous high-profile discharges, public campaigns and legal challenges to discrimination against gay and lesbian service personnel. This article examines the low-key status of military reform in the 1970s–80s, questioning why in Australia, for most discharged servicemen and women, the personal did not become political.

“Spark and Cultivate”

LISTEN is a Melbourne-based feminist collective focused on improving the position of women in the music industry, in part achieved through improving the documentation of women’s contribution to music. This article includes an interview with founder Evelyn Morris and gives an overview of the development and achievements of LISTEN, whilst placing it in the context of feminist activism in Australia. Morris discusses how LISTEN gave form to the dissatisfaction that was being felt by many women in the Melbourne music scene, and quickly became a hub for a variety of feminist activity. She also elaborates on her own perspectives on what feminism entails, and the recent increase in activism in this area.

The abandonment of procurement-linked strategic activism in Australia: standing still with room to move

In this paper I examine the extent to which preferential trade agreements (PTAs) limit the Australian government's ability to use public procurement for local industry development ends. I do so not only by examining Australia's PTA obligations, but also by examining how other governments with similar obligations—such as Korea—are using public purchasing policies to promote local industrial advancement. I find that the PTA obligations of the Australian and Korean governments leave them both significant scope to use public purchasing strategically. Interestingly, however, Australian policymakers have been standing still in the room that remains, and even abandoning PTA-compliant procurement-linked development policies. South Korean policymakers on the other hand have been capitalising on every inch of space left open to them—and even experimenting with new forms of strategic public purchasing that nonetheless comply with their international obligations. I conclude by offering some suggestions as to how we might explain these countries’ radically different approaches to procurement policy, despite their very similar international obligations.

Juliet Rogers: Law’s Cut on the Body of Human Rights

The anxieties of Australians of European descent over immigration and the construction of an ‘Australian identity’ have, in recent years coalesced around the issues of veiling by Muslim women and female genital mutilation (Aly and Walker 2007, 203–214). These customs have often been portrayed by politicians and the media as being threats to liberal democracy in Australia. Mainstream debates on the question of female genital mutilation (FGM) or female circumcision especially have been dominated by arguments similar to those made by Geraldine Brooks (1995), whose work portrays those subject to FGM as hapless victims in need of rescue by stringent legislation. Juliet Rogers’ book comes as a valuable intervention in these debates. Rogers does not explicitly state that her writing emerges from the Australian context, but it is an important frame by which to better understand her work. For those unfamiliar with the Australian context, Paula Abood (2002) is helpful in explaining the discourses regarding the question of Arab women’s identity and activism in Australia and the public obsession with Arab, African, Muslim Australian women’s private lives. Rogers’ book attempts to use psychoanalysis to examine the depiction of FGM and torture as scenes of violence which, according to the author, informed the demand of pressure groups for changes in legislation. Initially, Rogers draws the reader’s attention to the disturbing and graphic images of small girls undergoing circumcision, which are circulated in the media by anti FGM activists. Her primary argument, which derives from the work of Sigmund Freud, is that there is an inherent anxiety of castration in the mind of the subjects, who in this case are anti-FGM activists (6).