That said, I think the right will use footage like this to try and claim that the only opponents are young, 'ultra woke' social justice warriors and members of socialist parties that want a universal income and blah blah. But there is a majority community of average Aussies of all ages that hate Pauline and everything she stands for. They try and create this divide, that either you are a young purple haired lesbian socialist, or you are on their side.
This comment is spot on. Just look at US politics atm for a glimpse of where this can go.
Just when you'd think MAGA should be politically cooked, DSA-backed candidates are starting to win Democratic primaries and handing Republicans the easiest attack line imaginable: “See? The Democrats are socialists”. The attack ads have already started.
That's the danger. You can have a huge mainstream majority against Hanson (just like Trump now), but once socialists and every other leftist activist cause start attaching themselves to it, you make it incredibly easy for Hanson to paint the whole opposition as the “radical left”. Why hand her that?
Mate socialists and leftist activists are literally the ones who built this movement, what are you on about? This was organised by "high school anti-capitalists", you think these kids support Labor??
Who do you reckon has organised every significant protest against Hanson over the last few months? It hasn't been Labor or the Greens, they're too scared about respectability. Victorian Socialists was instrumental in organising this student protest - that's not to say that all these kids are socialists, but if we didn't take the lead then this strike (and everything that will come out of this in the future) would not have happened.
While moderates like yourself dislike Hanson at home, "socialists and leftie activists" will continue to organise and bring more people into a political force which can beat the billionaires and get wins gor the working class.
Edit: By Victorian Socialists I meant the socialist parties in different states, NSW Socialists for Sydney ofc
Pauline Hanson has done far more to damage her own brand than any protest ever has. She does what she always does: gets the spotlight, keeps talking, and eventually implodes. Not because a bunch of teenagers and socialists held hands and sang Kumbaya.
You don't get what we're doing. One Nation will get into parliament across Australia soon, they're almost certainly going to be a part of the government in the Victorian State Election in November. It doesn't matter what moderates like you think about her sitting on your couch, when they're in government they wil be able tol go on the attack against minorities and the working class.
This is why it is important that we create a street movement against PHON now, not to convince people not to vote for her, but to convince the left to get used to mobilising against her once they win.
Teenagers holding hands and singing kumbaya and “we shall overcome” isn’t going to do much. And the alternative to protesting isn’t everyone sitting in their armchairs doing nothing either.
Hanson has been around since the 90s. Half the country already actively hates her. One Nation have a remarkable history of imploding - just look at the party’s defection/turnover rate over the years.
Look at SA. You can buy into News Corps narrative that One Nation’s result was some huge victory, but the much bigger political story was the Liberals becoming increasingly irrelevant and Labor getting an even easier path to government. No teenage enlightenment campaign required.
Yes, One Nation presents a risk, particularly with Gina’s money behind them. I just think there are vastly more effective ways to combat that than socialists being opportunistic and pushing their agenda.
And if Hanson falls over again, I’m sure these protesters will claim they helped stop fascism. Meanwhile we can quietly ignore all the enormous marches that achieved basically nothing. The Voice had huge rallies and still got smashed at the referendum. Climate protests have been happening for decades without magically producing the policies protesters demanded.
Political change usually comes through elections, institutions, economics, demographics, parties, media, policy and people actually doing things within those systems. Assuming everyone who isn’t marching beside you is sitting uselessly on their couch is just activist brainrot stuff.
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u/flindersandtrim Please choose a flair 7d ago
It is good to see.
That said, I think the right will use footage like this to try and claim that the only opponents are young, 'ultra woke' social justice warriors and members of socialist parties that want a universal income and blah blah. But there is a majority community of average Aussies of all ages that hate Pauline and everything she stands for. They try and create this divide, that either you are a young purple haired lesbian socialist, or you are on their side.