Australia has a serious problem with social cohesion, but it’s no good pretending it’s recent. Koori civilisation has been torn asunder ever since the convict ships dropped anchor
Warning: This article contains racist and offensive language that may be distressing to some readers
Things fall apart, as Chinua Achebe warned us. And “things” – the climate, the social contract, the rules-based international order – seem to be falling apart at a rate of knots. They fell apart spectacularly and horribly at Bondi last December, when allegedly Islamist gunmen opened fire on civilians, including children. Fifteen people were killed. Many more were injured. This monstrosity was described as the worst terrorist attack Australia has suffered on home soil.
After Bondi, the Albanese government set up the royal commission on antisemitism and tacked on to it the job of investigating social cohesion. But what even is social cohesion? An obviously good idea that no reasonable person could oppose? Is promoting “social cohesion” a valid goal in a liberal democracy? Or is this the same old assimilationist bullshit being served up in a different bottle, designed only to silence dissent?