Victoria will officially move to become to first state or territory in Australia to place a ban on the public display Nazi symbols, including the Swastika.
Alongside the ban on Nazi symbolism, the Victorian Government plans to extend its anti-vilification protections, which will allow victims of vilification to have an easier time proving their negative experiences in the courts.
“Nazi symbols glorify one of the most hateful ideologies in human history. We must confront hate, prevent it, and give it no space to grow,” said Minister for Multicultural Affairs Ros Spence.
The move comes after reports of hate and vilification were, according to a report from the Victorian Parliament’s Legal and Social Issues Committee, becoming commonplace amongst Victorians of particular faith groups, LGBTQ+ individuals, people living with disabilities, those from linguistically diverse backgrounds, and those who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders.
In summary, there’s a lot of hatred and white supremacy going on in Victoria, and it needed to be stopped, which is why we’re seeing this law in the first place. It’s truly bonkers that there is such a problem with neo-Nazis in Victoria that there would have to be something put in writing to try and quash their antics, but here we are.
BREAKING: Victoria will become the first state in Australia to BAN the public display of Nazi symbols, including the Swastika. @10NewsFirstMelb
— Patrick Murrell (@pamurrell) September 2, 2021
The ban on the public display of Nazi imagery will come into place in the first half of 2022, as the Victorian government works on crafting the laws in the best way possible, to ensure that symbols used strictly for educational purposes are still considered acceptable.
“All forms of hate are unacceptable and have no place in Victoria – expanding our anti-vilification laws to protect more Victorians sends a clear message that this vile behaviour will not be tolerated,” Victorian Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes said in a press release.
“Our new laws… will make sure we consult widely with the community and impacted groups to get the settings right before making legislative changes.”
Next up, we should move to just banning all neo-Nazis in general, to be honest.
This is good but personally I would’ve gone for banning the actual Nazis pic.twitter.com/dVP9k5Q4Nz
— tanyam (@tanyamTV) September 2, 2021
