A statement of solidarity with the CARR protesters attacked by conservative Christian thugs

On the evening of the 21st of March, a small protest led by Community Action for Rainbow Rights was attacked by a mob of hundreds of far-right protesters. The incident took place outside of a talk by One Nation’s Mark Latham, held after a Catholic Mass at St. Michael’s Church Belfield. Far from being a “clash” as the media reported, this was a one-sided, cowardly attack by far-right goons on a small group of non-violent protesters.

The gay-bashing mob attack last night is the culmination of years of mobilising within ethnic minority Christian communities – mainly Catholic and Orthodox – by dedicated queerphobes. Anti-queer organising began to ramp up during the cuts to Safe Schools and the No campaign in the marriage equality postal survey. Large numbers of people mobilised at rallies, social events and special prayer meetings, where priests and other “community activists” told the faithful that gays are coming to groom their children – an efficient move to distract parishioners from the systemic child rape that occurs in religious institutions, and the continuing attempts to block survivor compensation claims.

Many of the more recent protests were organised out of the Christian Lives Matter (CLM) Facebook group, mostly Maronite Catholic and named in mockery of campaigns for Black rights, which first became known when one of its members defaced a mural of George Michael. The organisers of the mob at Belfield developed out of this environment, even though they appear to have split from the CLM founder Charlie Bakhos because of frustration with his focus on prayer nights over physical confrontation.

We have to stand in the streets to defend and extend both the right to protest, and the rights of queers. The power of religious institutions has to be broken, and far-right politicians like Latham need to be driven into irrelevancy.

The Maronite Catholic element in these mobilisations is significant. They are not just whipped up by queerphobic panic about trans people in schools, but also the Maronite identity politics that goes back decades. Among the queerphobes here are supporters of Lebanese political parties like the popular Lebanese Forces – a representative of the strand of Maronite fascism which helped start the Lebanese Civil War, and is responsible for countless massacres of Palestinians, leftists and other Lebanese civilians. The grouping has also generalised beyond Christianity – despite the group name – and received backing from the most conservative elements of the Muslim communities, as well as hard right Zionist groups.

However, the problem is not just confined to the ethnic religious communities. Elements of the Roman Catholic hierarchy in Australia endorse these sorts of anti-queer mobilisations, though they would want to keep themselves at arm’s length from the predictable violence. The Christian activists have cultivated relationships with priests and local parishes – Latham was officially invited to speak by the priest at St. Michael’s. Indeed, the established, largely Anglo “traditionalist” faction of the Catholic Church has been happy to make an alliance with these people, knowing they can use them in attacking both queers and progressives within the Church. Moreover, the largely white-run Churches have significant links with the major political parties.

This has been legitimised by politicians in One Nation and the Liberal Party arguing for “religious freedoms” and “parental rights”, and promoting the idea that it is a human right to be a bigot toward queer people. The corporate media has been more than happy to enable this not just by reporting on “gender whisperers” as Scott Morrison likes to refer to non-binary educators, but by stirring up moral panic and spreading misinformation about trans people in particular. 

None of this has been genuinely opposed by the Labor party leadership, who are wary of alienating potential voters and who have their own religious-right faction, or by the NGOs, who have written off speaking to people in western Sydney. This is the cover that gives these far right groups the confidence to mobilise in the streets, and even march alongside neo-Nazis, and these institutions must take the bulk of the responsibility for inciting this current atmosphere.

The horrific events of last night are the end product of years of right-wing mobilising, and it’s up to the left to put a stop to it. One Nation will be seeking to capitalise upon this frenzied transphobia at the election, and will push more bigoted bills which CLM will support on the streets. There needs to be a massive mobilisation of all sectors of the working class movement to oppose these rats and the ruling forces that prop them up, and to support the queer rights that the CARR protestors stood bravely for. This means bringing out unions, students, other left activist groups, members of the queer community, and workers generally. The far-right has developed roots in Sydney – it’s up to us to build the movement that will tear them out entirely.

Black Flag Sydney commits itself to supporting any mobilisation called by CARR and other queer organisations in response to the attack last night. We have to stand in the streets to defend and extend both the right to protest, and the rights of queers. The power of religious institutions has to be broken, and far-right politicians like Latham need to be driven into irrelevancy.

No Gods no masters!

Support the right to protest!

No right to discriminate!

For queer liberation!