Tanya Plibersek
Sydney · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“The Redress Scheme has, since 2018, received 80,000 applications and disbursed over $2 billion in redress payments to survivors. Thousands have received apologies or counselling that have changed their lives. That acknowledgement has changed their lives.”
“The scheme's operating expenses are met by taxpayers, who also step in as a funder of last resort for compensation payments, so the financial impacts obviously go beyond the victim-survivors themselves.”
“I want to take the opportunity to note recent media reports, particularly those in the Australian Financial Review , which said: Edmund Rice Education was created in 2007 and now operates dozens of schools affiliated with the Christian Brothers. … The split created a new organisation with the bulk of the Christian Brothers assets.”
“And of course they are also part of the larger group of people that are eligible now, because we've increased thresholds. Thanks to our changes, families now get around $30,000 of paid parental leave. That's more than double what it was when we came to government. But it's not just about paid parental leave.”
“The federal government is gravely concerned about the Christian Brothers Oceania Province's 22 June 2026 announcement that it would seek creditor and court approval for a creditors scheme of arrangement and a moratorium on all current and future civil proceedings in connection with child sexual abuse claims.”
“Thanks so much to the member for Cunningham. I know that she is out and about in her electorate all the time, and she knows that over 1,800 parents benefited from paid parental leave in her electorate just last year. Last week, I met Baby Zoe and her mum and dad. Baby Zoe is number three in a family of three children.”
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“We understand that the character of this violence changes over time, including as technology changes. We've made the leaving violence payment permanent so that women have the financial support they need to leave. We've invested in responses to perpetrators of violence that break that cycle of violence. We're investing more than any government before, with over $4 billion since 2022, and, of course, an additional $3.9 billion into legal services as well. But it's not just about dollars spent; we have to drive a seismic shift in our community. The Commonwealth government has a real, large and serious degree of responsibility here, and so do the states and territories, but so do all of us in our individual lives have a responsibility to shift the culture that turns a blind eye to violence—or worse, tacitly permits it.”
“This year we've already had a number of very painful reminders of why, as a nation, we have to be relentless in our commitment to end domestic, family and sexual violence. We have to make sure that every child has the opportunity to grow up safe, loved and hopeful for their future. Like so many Australians, I was shocked and heartbroken when I heard that Sophie Quinn, her unborn baby, her aunt Nerida Quinn and her friend John Harris had been killed. I'm just as devastated that Sophie and Nerida were two of at least six women who have been killed in the last two months alone. Every single death reminds us of what is at stake. That's why we will continue, as a government, to address the gaps that remain in our national effort to reinforce what works and to make sure that we adapt to the pervasiveness of family, domestic and sexual violence.”
“They will ensure that there is no ambiguity around how employment income, particularly partner income, should be assessed when determining a recipient's rate of payment. Together, the amendments in this bill improve the fairness and effectiveness of our social security safety net and ensure that there is legislative clarity in how the social security system supports people when they need it most. Debate adjourned.”
“Making sure that people who are frequently making use of urgent payments know about these services and are able to use them is an important way of helping people manage their money longer term. Finally, the bill amends the Social Security Act 1991 to clarify the legal basis for the operation of employment income attribution provisions, which support the determination of a person's rate of social security payment. In particular, these amendments will clarify that these provisions apply to the employment income of a social security recipient's partner, for the purposes of income testing that recipient, and that the provisions apply at any time employment income is being assessed for the purposes of working out a recipient's rate of pension or benefit. These amendments will uphold long-established policy intent and practice.”
“This could include referrals to financial counselling services or to social work services, as well as alternative payment arrangements like weekly payments and Centrepay. The government has increased funding for frontline emergency relief and financial wellbeing services by 25 per cent. These services are a lifeline when people are doing it tough. And we've expanded our No Interest Loans Scheme, with more than $48 million over five years supporting people and families on low incomes. This gives them access to safe, fair loans with no interest, no fees and no charges. Every year, around 25,000 of these loans help Australians cover essential expenses without falling into debt traps.”
“An urgent payment is not an additional payment but enables a person to receive a portion of their usual fortnightly entitlement early. Currently, a person can generally only receive two urgent payments in a 12-month period. This limit will be removed. Instead, other safeguards will be implemented to ensure people still have enough funds on their usual payment delivery day to cover their regular expenses. These safeguards will include limiting the payment amount to a maximum of between $20 and $200, and up to 50 per cent of the person's accrued entitlement (whichever is lower) after any deductions (such as Centrepay) or repayments have been accounted for. People who access a high number of urgent payments will also be offered personalised support.”
“While these two measures clarify technical legal aspects of the current operation of the Child Support Scheme, I'd like the House to note that there is much more work to be done to ensure the scheme delivers children the financial support they are owed and is safe for women at risk of violence or abuse. I expect to have more to say on further improvements to the child support system later this year. The bill also amends the Social Security Act 1991 and the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999 to strengthen the legislative basis for making urgent payments to people experiencing financial difficulties in exceptional and unforeseen circumstances. Urgent payments are a longstanding and important part of the social security system, providing immediate financial assistance to vulnerable people in emergency situations.”
“These amendments are necessary as amendments made in 2008 and 2018 to child support law had the unintended consequence of technically allowing some parents with less than 35 per cent care to be eligible for child support. It was never the intention of parliament to make such a change, and these amendments correct this technicality. The amendments will also validate previous decisions which have been made on this basis to provide certainty for parents and carers, and the changes uphold the objects, principles and policy intent of the Child Support Scheme and reflect consistent practice over decades.”
“It is a longstanding principle of the system that a parent or carer who has less than 35 per cent care of a child is not eligible to receive child support for that child as they do not bear a significant enough burden of the direct costs of care. In most cases, the existing legislation ensures a parent with more than 65 per cent care is not required to pay child support. This ensures parents who provide the clear majority of care have sufficient resources to financially support their children. These amendments ensure that a parent with less than 35 per cent care is not entitled to receive child support, and it validates decisions made since 2008 with that effect.”
“The amendments will ensure that where a new child support assessment is made after the 15th day of a calendar month, the new child support period will begin from the first day of the second month following the assessment. The practical effect here is that, when a new assessment is made requiring a higher or lower child support payment, we ensure that parents have the following month to prepare for the change instead of potentially just one or two days. The bill also amends the Assessment Act to fix legislative anomalies that could allow parents with less than 35 per cent care of a child to be entitled to child support.”
“The bill amends the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989, the Assessment Act, to allow a child support period to start a month later than currently provided for if a new child support assessment is made after the 15th day of the month. This ensures that parents have sufficient time to adjust to a new child support assessment before it comes into effect. Currently, where a new tax assessment is received by the Child Support Registrar after the 15th day of the month and a new child support assessment is made in that same month, the legislation requires that a new child support period commence from the start of the next month. That means in practice that parents may have as little as one day to adjust to a new child support assessment.”
“This bill gives legal clarity to long established practice and policy intent across four key areas: firstly, clarifying the commencement date of child support periods when the Child Support Registrar receives information about a parent's tax assessment; secondly, clarifying that child support eligibility is limited to those with more than 35 per cent care of a child; thirdly, allowing for urgent payments to be provided to eligible recipients outside the standard fortnightly cycle; and finally, upholding as existing arrangements for the assessment of employment income, particularly income earned by support by partners of income support recipients.”
“The bill also responds to priorities identified through the Legal Compliance and Remediation Program within Services Australia. Many are being resolved simply by policy or system changes in Services Australia, but other changes require legislation. Again, the robodebt era saw too many of these hidden away, put in the too-hard basket or left for someone else to fix. Minister Gallagher and I are responding to these issues as they arise and as they come to our notice.”
“And, from 20 January 2026, the government will increase the small debt waiver threshold to $250, to be indexed annually, with around 1.2 million small debts expected to be waived or no longer needing to be raised in 2025-26 as a result. Access to special circumstances debt waivers was also expanded for more victims of financial abuse and coercion, specifically those coerced into providing false information to the government by their abusers. The Social Security and Other Legislation Amendment (Technical Changes No. 1) Bill 2026 marks another important milestone in strengthening the legal framework for Australia's social security system. It's a largely technical bill and reflects the need for social security legislation to be dynamic and to evolve with the policy intent of government and as external challenges demand.”
“This is as a result of the government's real increase to working-age and student payments of $40 per fortnight, along with regular indexation. We have increased Commonwealth rent assistance maximum rates by nearly 50 per cent through real increases in 2023 and 2024 as well as indexation. We are providing more support through our changes to parenting payment single, which has expanded eligibility for the payment to around 106,000 single parents. We are expanding paid parental leave to a total of 26 weeks by the middle of this year, with superannuation now paid on top of paid parental leave. Parents who have a child today can receive almost $12,000 more through the Paid Parental Leave scheme than when we first came to government.”
“I move: That the bill be now read a second time. Since the Albanese Labor government was first elected, we have been hard at work restoring trust in Australia's social security system. This is one of the critical tasks of government, because, without the trust of the Australian taxpayer and income support recipients, the social security system loses legitimacy in the eyes of the community. That was the legacy of the coalition government and of robodebt. Across consecutive budget cycles and record funding, the government has restored fairness and adequacy for many income support recipients by raising the rate of working-age and student payments to help ease cost-of-living pressures. Since we were elected, we have increased the annual single rate of JobSeeker payments by almost $4,000.”
“I move: That the bill be now read a second time. The National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People (Transitional Provisions) Bill 2026 is part of a package of two bills which together will create the statutory office of the National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People and the commission as a statutory agency. This bill provides for the transition of the executive agency, established in January 2025, and the incumbent national commissioner to the permanent statutory agency and statutory office. Debate adjourned.”
“Every child deserves to grow up connected to their family, community and culture. They deserve to be heard, to be protected and, of course, to be loved. They should expect that, with hard work, no job, dream or opportunity is off limits to them. This bill will drive meaningful change for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people that can be sustained throughout their lives, benefiting each one of them and, of course, all of us as Australians. Debate adjourned.”
“And, today, it is a Labor government that is promoting and protecting the cultural identity and development of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people with this bill. To get there, we'll ensure this legislated national commissioner is resourced properly. Our government is investing a total of $33½ million over the four years from 2025-26 and $8.4 million a year ongoing to support the commission's operation. This funding will ensure that the national commission has the staff, capabilities and capacity to deliver on and comply with its intended statutory functions and obligations. What parents and families want for their children is the opportunity to succeed, now and into the future. When we get it right for children and young people, our entire nation benefits.”
“They have a right to learn their culture and language, just as they have a right to stay connected to their country, their family and their community. And, of course, they have a right to a safe home, a right to health, a right to an education that allows them to find their purpose, to find meaning and to find a job. Too often, though, government policy has damaged and disrupted their young lives. It was a Labor government that said sorry for the laws and policies of successive parliaments and governments that created these harms. It was a Labor government that apologised for the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, their communities and country.”
“Or the young Indigenous rangers that I met in Murujuga, who are protecting and managing the now World Heritage listed site and its two million petroglyphs, some of them so old that the tectonic plates of the earth have shifted and they lie on seabed floor. These rangers have shared with me the importance of learning from their elders, managing their cultural heritage and protecting their country for future generations. This has been a common story for all of the young Indigenous rangers that I've met around the country. And, of course, I think too about the young people on our youth advisory group for the Create Foundation, who are drawing on their experiences in out-of-home care to change the system for the next lot of kids. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are heirs to over 65,000 years of continuous culture.”
“It makes me think of the young people in Redfern who wake up at 6 am three times a week to attend the Clean Slate Without Prejudice program, a program that instils a sense of pride and community through group activities and mentoring, and the amazing mentors that have grown out of that program. They're making great choices every day. They are disciplined, they're committed and, when they show up, they're learning lifelong skills. I think of Jasmine Yunupingu, who created the Girl Power Group in 2021. That saw her use her own money to cook and share a meal with victims-survivors of sexual violence, so they felt safe enough to tell their stories.”
“Further, the bill·gives the commissioner information-gathering capabilities, including the option to require information or ask people and organisations to respond to written requests, powers that mean governments are held publicly accountable should they fail to respond to such requests for information and documentation. Children and young people need to understand their rights to be able to exercise them. This bill supports the commissioner to help Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people understand their rights while also ensuring that their views, needs and experiences inform our decision-making. In introducing this bill, I can't help but reflect on the many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people that I've met with and been inspired by over many years.”
“This bill also gives the commissioner discretion and independence to conduct inquiries into matters affecting the rights, interests, development, safety or wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people—powers that the commissioner will exercise while upholding Australia's international human rights commitments, with respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people. Where appropriate, ministers may request the commissioner inquire into a particular matter. The commissioner can publish reports and submit them to the minister, to be followed by tabling in parliament within 15 sitting days.”
“This bill ensures the best interests of children and young people are at the centre of the commissioner's work—which will be characterised by collaboration and strengthened national coordination. Where necessary, the commissioner will work with state, territory and Commonwealth agencies to identify and recommend solutions on systemic issues. The national commissioner will make sure that governments take responsibility for how their policies impact Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people, while working to improve outcomes for those children and young people.”
“All too often, the views of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people are not heard in the decisions that affect their lives. The measures in this bill will change that, by listening to their experiences. The national commissioner will have the power to speak directly with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, young people, and their families on matters impacting their lives, their hopes, and their futures. This might mean sitting down with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in Darebin in Naarm (in Melbourne), or in Redfern on Gadigal country (in Sydney), on Mer Island in the Torres Strait, or in Yuendumu in Warlpiri country (in the Northern Territory), acknowledging and recognising that their opinions and perspectives are fundamental for lasting change.”
“But our children are not statistics, they are our future and they will be at the centre of everything we do.' I've no doubt that under her leadership, we will reach our shared goal of ensuring that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people have equal access to all of the opportunities that our nation has to offer. To reach that aim, this bill enables the national commissioner: We know that the Closing the Gap targets relating to development, child protection, safety and justice are off track. We know that there is more to do, both at the Commonwealth and state and territory levels—just as we know that to meet Closing the Gap targets, we have to deal with systemic issues. This bill gives the national commissioner powers to identify and call out persistent disadvantage demonstrated by these alarming figures.”
“I'd also like to thank Lil Gordon, an experienced public servant and effective advocate, for her service as the acting commissioner; the National Children's Commissioner, Deb Tsorbaris; the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Katie Kiss; and of course, Sue-Anne Hunter, who is in the gallery with us today, who is now the permanent national commissioner of the body we're legislating today. Ms Hunter is an inspiring, highly qualified and highly respected leader. When taking up this role, she said: 'The work is urgent and the statistics are grim.”
“I especially want to acknowledge the Safe and Supported Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group, and all the incredible Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander state and territory children's commissioners, guardians and advocates for the important role they've played in developing this bill. And, of course, the voices of a group of 12 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people who shared advice on what the commissioner can do to make a difference. They highlighted: I want to thank them all for the role they've played in bringing this to fruition. This was a truly collaborative process, and I'm deeply grateful to everyone involved.”
“In 2019 over 70 organisations, children's commissioners and guardians came together to call for a national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander commissioner to hold systems and services accountable. They described the levels of discrimination and disadvantage being faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children at the time as 'widespread, systemic and intergenerational'. Sadly, these sobering assessments have continued, but so too has the tireless advocacy to change them. Today I want to commend the countless Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders whose sustained work and unwavering commitment has led to this moment.”
“I move: That this bill be now read a second time. I am honoured to bring to parliament the bill to legislate the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People. This bill delivers a permanent, independent statutory agency, led by a national commissioner, with the necessary powers to improve the lives of Indigenous children and young people today and into the future. Experts and advocates have been calling for these reforms since the 1980s. SNAICC, the peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, in their 1991 State of denial report, asked for 'legislation to recognise the unique rights of Indigenous children'.”
“Teachers and parents have also told us that they need the right tools and training, so we're investing $10 million into antibullying resources. This year also marks extraordinary progress in early childhood education, backed by a $5 billion investment. Australian children are now eligible for three days of subsidised early education and care—an extra 100,000 families in which parents will be returning to work and supporting those children. There are also pay increases of up to 15 per cent for early education workers. We've got free TAFE and university debt relief as well. So, in every area of education, we're making sure that Australians have the opportunities to get a great start in life.”
“We've taken world-leading action to tackle online harms via our social media ban for children under the age of 16 and introduced restrictions on predatory technologies like nudify apps and undetectable stalking tools. These reforms put children's safety first, and they follow bans on phones in schools during school hours, which teachers and parents—and kids—will tell you mean that more kids are playing and talking to each other in the playground and fewer of them are scrolling at lunchtime. We know that too many parents are worried about bullying and too many children are still being harmed by bullying, and that's why we've asked schools to act faster. The Anti-Bullying Rapid Review will push schools to respond within two days to a complaint or an incident of bullying.”
“That's why, when the Abbott, Turnbull and Morrison governments cut public school funding, we voted against it and we promised to fix it, and indeed I'm proud that we have. Our government is continuing the historic work of ensuring that every public school is fully funded, with investment tied to evidence based reforms. The Better and Fairer Schools Agreement will deliver substantial Commonwealth investment over the coming decade, lifting student outcomes and closing the equity gaps that hold too many children back. That means literacy and numeracy checks in year 1, targeted interventions like small-group and catch-up tutoring, stronger mental health programs, and support for teacher development and retention.”
“As students, families and teachers return to school for the new school year, I want to recognise the hard work that's happening in every classroom and every staff room around Australia, from Bourke Street Public School in my electorate all the way over to Grovelands in Perth. Education is deeply personal to me. My parents came here as refugees after the Second World War. They didn't have anything. They didn't even have much English language. Every opportunity I and my brothers have had was because of the excellent education that we received through the public education system here and the opportunities that opened up to us, and I want every single child to have those same opportunities.”
“It's not my choice that women have children; it's genetic.' They have always been a mess on paid parental leave. And if we needed a reminder of that, we had a tragic one during the debate on Baby Priya's bill when we had the member for Canning, the member for Bowman and the member for Barker hijack the debate on Baby Priya's bill. While the Liberals and the Nationals have always been ambivalent about paid parental leave, we are absolutely clear on this side: we support new families; we support new parents; we support this investment. We are delivering. They are in disarray.”
“Our changes mean: more time—the full six months; more money; higher payments, and also superannuation, on paid parental leave; more flexibility, so more time for mum and dad to take off together; and more people eligible as well. And, of course, when they go back to work, mums and dads get cheaper child care as well, saving thousands. Of course those opposite have not been clear on paid parental leave—not ever. It was in fact former Treasurer Joe Hockey who called mothers 'double dippers'—on Mother's Day! It was former prime minister Scott Morrison who called them 'rorters'. And when those opposite tried to introduce their own scheme, the member for Mitchell called it 'unaffordable and unsustainable and an albatross around the neck of the party'. And the member for Goldstein said to me: 'It's a very bad scheme.”
“Thanks so much to the member for Holt for her question. I know she is a huge supporter of paid parental leave, and it was lovely to see Baby Ilija yesterday. He is growing up so quickly. Before the Rudd and Gillard governments, Australia was one of the very few developed nations that had no paid parental leave scheme. Labor started paid parental leave, and we are expanding it. And from 1 July this year, we will expand it again. Families will get the benefits of a full six months of paid parental leave. Under this Prime Minister, people who are receiving paid parental leave are already $12,000 better off—just since 2022. We have almost doubled paid parental leave since coming to government, and 180,000 families are benefiting from our changes.”
“That will be a very important opportunity to say what comes next in the implementation of these recommendations. The member for Warringah and other members will have the opportunity to make contributions at that time. Frontline workers will absolutely be a part of designing that second action plan, as will victims and survivors of family, domestic and sexual violence. We agree with you, the member for Warringah and the members for Kooyong and Mackellar, about the urgency of this, and I would say that every member of parliament agrees with the urgency, but we don't need more reports. We need to focus on the actions that will make a difference.”
“Every family violence peak body in this country released a statement that said 'royal commissions have an important role in the Australian system, including gathering evidence when we have no other way to get to the root of a problem'. That is not the situation here. The evidence is clear. We know what needs to be done to prevent, respond to and help people heal from family violence. That's why this government has invested $4 billion in those 122 initiatives that I spoke about a minute ago. It's why we're working so closely with the states and territories, which are responsible for policing, for courts, for the justice system and for the day-to-day operation of domestic violence refuges, and it's why we're about to start the consultation on the second action plan of the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children.”
“Last year, the Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Commissioner's annual report to parliament pointed out that we have a thousand recommendations from at least eight major royal commissions, inquiries and reviews. Most recently, we had the rapid review that the National Cabinet commissioned at the behest of the Prime Minister and the premiers. We're implementing that work right now. We've had the South Australian royal commission most recently, the NT coronial inquest, many parliamentary inquiries and the Victorian royal commission. We need to get on with the work of implementing these recommendations, and we are. Right now, there are 583 initiatives happening around the country—122 of those are Commonwealth led. They're being reported on publicly.”
“I want to thank the member for Warringah for her question. I know the members for Warringah, for Kooyong and for Mackellar have written to the Prime Minister in similar terms, and I absolutely understand where they're coming from and the intent of their letter and this question. The government absolutely agrees with the urgency of the issues that the member for Warringah is raising. But the truth is—and frontline workers will tell you this—we don't need another royal commission to tell us what's happening with the deaths of women in Australia and what we need to do. In fact, frontline workers have been very clear that they don't want another report; they want the implementation of the work that we're doing right now.”
“In choosing the latter, I believe we not only heal but will find a better country waiting for us on the other side. It falls on us in this chamber to embody those values because, as JFK reflected, the job of a nation's leader is not to curse the darkness but to light a candle through the darkness to a safe and sure future.”
“The eight flames of the menorah have come to symbolise light, not fire, because the story passed down by Jewish teachers over centuries is one of renewal, not vengeance. Historian Thomas Cahill argued that it was the Jews who give us the outside and the inside of our moral world, and that most of our best words—freedom, progress, spirit, faith—are the gifts of the Jews. Another idea born of Jewish culture is the idea that love is the foundation of justice. Love as the foundation of justice is so important. How hard it is to ask that of us right now. Yet Australians will continue, in the shadow of this heartbreak, to face a choice. Will we allow one evil act to divide us, to erode our principles, or can we remain steadfast and resolute in our commitment to love?”
“I listened as 10-year-old Matilda Britvan's friends remembered her radiant smile and infectious laugh at her funeral. Rabbi Yehoram Ulman, who only days before had buried his own son-in-law, Rabbi Eli Schlanger, read her eulogy, asking that Matilda remain not only in all of our hearts but in our deeds and in how we live our lives. I've known Matilda's family for decades, and I know what a loss they have suffered. It is within these acts that our shared humanity lives. To have the moral clarity to choose courage over hate, to defy darkness and to engage in even one mitzvah is no small feat. It's one of the key lessons of Hanukkah which, as we honour the 15 victims of Bondi, warrants reflection.”
“In the last few weeks, I've watched people reach out across religious, social and political divides to comfort each other and mourn together, and I've sat with Jewish families as they've searched for hope in the face of unimaginable grief. I got to apologise to the family of Leibel Lazaroff, who came from Texas to be with their young son and brother. He was catastrophically injured; his only thoughts were to protect the people around him, to staunch the blood flowing from the wounds of the person who fell next to him. I was able to stand with Rabbi Elimelech Levy as he lit Sydney's longest-standing public menorah just days after the attack. It was a ceremony I've been to before in Martin Place, in the open. Instead, this year we had to have it inside, in Sydney Town Hall.”
“I believe that it is within the conscience of Ahmed al-Ahmed, who put himself in harm's way to end the violence, and within the consciences of Boris and Sofia Gurman, who were fatally shot attempting to disarm one of the gunmen, and within the police officers, the off-duty lifeguards and the first responders who rushed to the scene and within ordinary people, like Jessica Rosen, who covered the bodies of children with their own bodies to protect them from the barrage of bullets, and within the thousands of Australians who donated blood or gave money or simply comforted their Jewish friends that we saw the true character of this nation.”
“As the minutes turned into hours, we heard about the worst of humanity—a terror attack against our Jewish community, an act of violent antisemitism, carried out at one of our nation's most cherished landmarks that horrified the world. Arthur Miller wrote that there are moments when an individual conscience is all that can keep the world from falling apart, and, as the horror unfolded, we also saw something else distinctly Australian: people doing whatever they could to help.”
“The messages started coming through on the WhatsApp group through the security guards, and Elka Feldman came up to the stage and told us that there had been a security event in Bondi—that was the first message we got—and that we should hurry things along. The next message we heard was that there had been gunshots. Rabbi Feldman finished the lighting of the menorah, and we dispersed. It wasn't until I got into my car to drive home that more news started coming through about what really sounded fanciful when we first heard it. We couldn't believe the news that was coming through. Sadly, as the night progressed, it became apparent that the first disturbing reports that we'd found were only the very beginning of the horror that unfolded that night.”
“I think one of the most lovely things that Rabbi Feldman told me that night is that the neighbours there in Newtown had wanted to have their Christmas party at the same time as Chanukah in the Park, and, in typical Australian fashion, they worked out that the neighbours would have their party a bit earlier and then go to Chanukah in the Park and the people organising Chanukah in the Park would go to the neighbourhood party first, and that celebration was combined. This is a celebration that I've attended over the years. There were children, music, doughnuts, face painting and clowning. It was a beautiful, uplifting celebration, and then something changed.”