The Christian scripture “Peace on Earth and goodwill to all” is not only the hope of those who celebrate Christmas, it’s also both the weary longing of those who don’t profit from the war, violence and division that has characterised recent local and global history, and the go-to solution for political and community leaders looking for solutions.
In practice, however, “goodwill to those like us and ‘please stay peaceful’ to those who aren’t” may be a more accurate characterisation of our collective experience as wealth shifts inexorably upwards, basic universal services are outsourced – disability support, early education, aged and health care – shifting shareholders into the role of primary beneficiaries, and the corporatisation of not-for-profits has social services providers placing increased market share higher on their priority list than improving the lives of the Australians doing it toughest.
It is hard to pursue the vision of “goodwill to all” when the system feels rigged towards “more money and power for them” and you’re struggling to buy Christmas presents for your children, lining up at endless unsuccessful rental inspections, carrying the stress of insecure work or, for others, working long hours while still being unable to pay the mortgage. Even harder when you’re being told – explicitly in the street or implicitly by the media – that you don’t belong and that your vision of a better life for your family may be destroying the country.
Looking for solutions, or seeking to lay blame, there are demands the government ends antisemitism, run another anti-racism campaign and lower migration, rather than looking at the structurally embedded causes of exclusion, disadvantage and growing frustration experienced by a growing number of Australians – from First Nations and migrants through to generations of white Australians who have never known anything but financial distress.
It goes without saying that racism, religious extremism and the growing neo-Nazi movement must be combatted through every available means – strengthening hate speech and gun laws, resourcing intelligence agencies and influencing society through cultural engagement – but if we neglect to address the soil in which disaffection, disengagement and resentment grows, peace on Earth and goodwill to all will continue to face global shortages.
With economic structural disadvantage as the fertile ground in which disaffection germinates requiring a long process of reform to address, it is essential that now – today – we cease adding fertiliser.
Fomenting division is the business model for political leaders searching for a hook – any hook – to attract votes. Let’s be clear – lowering the number of refugees Australia welcomes by a few thousand, or tweaking the skilled migration numbers down a few thousand more will not address the cause of discontent. It is instructive to consider that when our heroes are migrants – whether they be Gout Gout, Usman Khawaja or Ahmed al-Ahmed – there is almost never a resultant positive conversation about the value of migration. Rarely do we maturely discuss the negative impact for all Australians should skilled migrants collectively choose a more welcoming nation to contribute their skills to and cause our already dire workforce shortages across dozens of industries to deepen, or the system barriers that prevent those already here from accessing the health, education, employment and social services that would enhance their lives, increase belonging and build stronger communities.
Religious radicalism is found in every religion, crime in every culture and racism in every ethnicity. Extremism percolates in social, economic and cultural inequality. If we are to eradicate extremism, as the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has committed us to, those politicians seeking to profit from fear and division will need to redirect their energy towards creating an Australia where inequality and exclusion are likewise eliminated – goodwill for all people, not only those they can distract from the root causes of their disaffection through distributing blame away from the systems that entrench economic disadvantage and social division.
So, where can hope be found?
Throughout Hanukah, my friend, and Orthodox Jewish rabbi, Gabi Kaltmann was leading the Pillars of Light festival in Melbourne’s Federation Square, which people of all faiths and no faith attended. At a vigil the day after the Bondi murders, Rabbi Jeffrey Kamins and the Australian National Imams Council’s Bilal Rauf embraced in solidarity. Turbans 4 Australia, the charity led by Sikh Local Hero Australian of the Year Amar Singh, handed out water and food to anyone who needed sustenance.
This is what “goodwill to all” looks like in action. It is the Australia that could be, and – if you look away from your social media feed – already is. Peace on Earth – or in our community – won’t come from the politics of deficit and envy, nor from diverting our attention from the causes of exclusion and inequality by laying blame on its victims. If we are to find hope in our mourning, and in a future without fear, it will be found in our collective commitment to build an Australia where socially, economically and culturally everyone is equally welcome to belong, contribute and thrive.
Brad Chilcott is the founder of Welcoming Australia. He is the director of Ribcage Consulting and strategic adviser for SSI
