Leslie Massey
Holocaust denial is not explicitly illegal in Australia, but it can be considered racial vilification, which is an offence under section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. This Act makes it unlawful to intimidate, offend, humiliate or insult on the basis of race. However, some have argued that exemptions in Brandis' draft legislation would make it easier for Holocaust deniers to spread their message and hide under the guise of historical research or political discussion. In contrast, other countries like Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia have made Holocaust denial illegal and punishable by imprisonment.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Legality of Holocaust denial in Australia | Not technically illegal, but can be considered racial vilification and fall foul of the Racial Discrimination Act. |
| Examples of Holocaust denial in Australia | The Australian Civil Liberties Union and its founder, John Bennett; Fredrick Toben and the Adelaide Institute. |
| Notable cases | Toben v Jones (2003): the Federal Court found that some pages on Toben's website breached the Racial Discrimination Act by vilifying Jews. |
| Relevant legislation | Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act makes it unlawful to intimidate, offend, humiliate or insult on the basis of race. |
| Impact | Active and vigorous antisemitic organisations and individuals are present in Australia, with the Executive Council of Australian Jewry logging an average of over 170 incidents of anti-Jewish racist violence per year. |
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What You'll Learn
- Holocaust denial is not illegal in Australia, but it can be considered racial vilification
- The Australian Civil Liberties Union was the first Australian group to publicly deny the Holocaust
- Holocaust denial is often used to rehabilitate anti-Semitism and promote anti-Semitic policies
- Holocaust deniers in Australia include Fredrick Toben and his Adelaide Institute
- Holocaust denial hate mail has been sent to the homes of journalists in Melbourne
Holocaust denial is not illegal in Australia, but it can be considered racial vilification
Holocaust denial is not explicitly illegal in Australia. However, it can be considered racial vilification, which is prohibited under the Racial Discrimination Act (RDA). Section 18C of the RDA makes it unlawful to intimidate, offend, humiliate, or insult anyone based on their race. This means that while denying the Holocaust is not illegal in and of itself, if it is done in a way that targets or vilifies a specific racial group, it could fall under the RDA.
The issue of Holocaust denial in Australia has been the subject of several notable incidents and court cases. In 1979, the founder of the Australian Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), John Bennett, launched a publicity campaign for Arthur Butz's book "Hoax of the Twentieth Century", which became a handbook for anti-Semites. The book's themes were later adopted by the US-based Institute of Historical Review.
In another case, columnist Beatrice Faust reported receiving Holocaust denial hate mail at her Melbourne home. The perpetrators were believed to be associated with organised racist groups, aiming to cause distress to Jews or bring them into contempt through vilification.
One of the most well-known cases involving Holocaust denial in Australia is Toben v Jones (2003). In this case, Jeremy Jones, then director of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, argued that Fredrick Toben's Adelaide Institute website vilified Jews. The Federal Court found that certain pages on the website did breach the RDA, particularly those that insulted Jews who were offended by Holocaust denial.
Despite the existence of the RDA, some have argued that exemptions in proposed legislation could make it easier for Holocaust deniers to spread their message. Jewish community leader Jeremy Jones and free marketer Chris Berg expressed concern that the broad exemptions in Attorney-General George Brandis' draft bill could protect Holocaust deniers who disguise their vilification of Jews as historical or political discussion. However, Brandis has asserted that racial vilification would always capture the concept of Holocaust denial.
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The Australian Civil Liberties Union was the first Australian group to publicly deny the Holocaust
Holocaust denial is not explicitly illegal in Australia. However, it can be interpreted as a form of spreading hatred and thus an offence, depending on the context in which the statements are made. The Australian Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), founded by John Bennett, was the first Australian group to publicly deny the Holocaust. The ACLU has been described as "one of Victoria's foremost racist and Holocaust-denying organisations." Bennett, a solicitor from Victoria, Australia, was one of the country's longest and most active Holocaust deniers, joining the movement in the late 1970s. He established the ACLU in 1980 after disagreements with the Victorian Council for Civil Liberties (VCCL), which he had also co-founded.
Bennett's denial of the Holocaust was influenced by Arthur Butz's book "Hoax of the Twentieth Century," published in 1976. Butz was a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Northwestern University. His book became a handbook for anti-Semites and a cornerstone for the US-based Institute of Historical Review. Bennett embraced "revisionism," writing articles and letters arguing against the Holocaust and distributing them to opinion leaders, libraries, and the media. He also supported other Holocaust deniers, such as Fredrick Töben.
The ACLU's denial of the Holocaust was part of a broader agenda of racist and antisemitic beliefs. The group sought to cause hurt and distress to Jews and bring them into contempt and disrepute. The reality of active antisemitic organisations and individuals in Australia has been acknowledged by observers of racism in the country. The Executive Council of Australian Jewry has recorded numerous incidents of anti-Jewish racist violence, including over 200 incidents in 1993 alone.
Civil Liberties Australia (CLA), on the other hand, is a non-party political organisation promoting people's rights and civil liberties. It is independent of other groups and is working towards a national Human Rights Act campaign to enshrine rights for all Australians in law.
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Holocaust denial is often used to rehabilitate anti-Semitism and promote anti-Semitic policies
Holocaust denial is a form of antisemitism, which is defined as prejudice against or hatred of Jews. The Holocaust, the state-sponsored persecution and murder of European Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators, is history's most extreme example of antisemitism. Violent antisemitism and hatred did not end with the defeat of Nazi Germany, and it is important to stand up to antisemitism in all its forms today. Holocaust denial and distortion generally claim that the Holocaust was invented or exaggerated by Jews as part of a plot to advance Jewish interests. These views perpetuate long-standing antisemitic stereotypes and hateful beliefs that helped lay the groundwork for the Holocaust.
The Anti-Defamation League has stated that "Holocaust denial is a contemporary form of the classic anti-Semitic doctrine of the evil, manipulative and threatening world Jewish conspiracy." French historian Valérie Igounet has also written that "Holocaust denial is a convenient polemical substitute for anti-Semitism." By denying the Holocaust, antisemites attempt to make anti-Semitic arguments seem respectable and normalize anti-Semitic policies. This strategy can be effective in convincing people that antisemitism is not a serious issue and that Jews are not a vulnerable group deserving of protection.
In some countries, Holocaust denial has been made illegal due to its connection to antisemitism. For example, in Austria, the Verbotsgesetz 1947 was amended in 1992 to prohibit the denial or gross minimization of the Holocaust. Similarly, in Belgium, Holocaust denial was made illegal in 1995. In the Czech Republic, denying or justifying the Holocaust or other genocides is punishable by imprisonment. These laws recognize the harmful impact of Holocaust denial and aim to prevent the promotion of antisemitism and hatred.
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Holocaust deniers in Australia include Fredrick Toben and his Adelaide Institute
Holocaust denial is not explicitly illegal in Australia. However, the country's Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth) prohibits racially vilificatory speech and publishing material that incites hatred or discrimination against people based on their race or beliefs. This legislation has been used to prosecute Holocaust deniers in the country, including Fredrick Toben and his Adelaide Institute.
Fredrick Toben was a German-born Australian citizen who founded and directed the Adelaide Institute, a Holocaust denial group. Toben and his associates at the Institute denied being Holocaust deniers, claiming that they "cannot deny that which never happened". However, their actions and published materials contradicted these claims. Toben visited Iran in 2003 and, in a speech and an interview with Iranian state television, denied the Holocaust, stating that "Israel is founded on the Holocaust lie." Toben also participated in the International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust, a Holocaust denial conference in Tehran sponsored by the Iranian regime.
The Adelaide Institute was formed in 1995 from the former Truth Mission established in 1994 by Toben. The Institute's stated goal was to restore the honour of Nazism by claiming that the Holocaust is a Jewish lie. Prior to the release of the film 'Schindler's List' in Adelaide, members of the Institute distributed Holocaust denial pamphlets on the street and through the mail, targeting those of Jewish background. They also sent materials denying the Holocaust to prominent Australian newspapers, disguising them as objective movie reviews.
In 1998, Toben was arrested and imprisoned in Germany for breaching Germany's Holocaust Law (§130 public incitement), which prohibits anyone from defaming the dead. In 2000, the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) ruled that Toben and the Adelaide Institute had engaged in unlawful conduct by publishing material that was racially vilificatory of Jewish people on their website. The Commission ordered Toben to remove the offending content and issue an apology. When Toben failed to comply, he was found guilty of contempt of court and incarcerated in South Australia in 2009. Despite his legal troubles, Toben continued to express Holocaust denial sentiments and supported the weakening of Australia's race hate laws.
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Holocaust denial hate mail has been sent to the homes of journalists in Melbourne
Holocaust denial has been a growing concern in Australia, with several incidents of hate mail and propaganda targeting journalists and academics. In one instance, Holocaust denial hate mail was sent to the Melbourne home of columnist Beatrice Faust. The perpetrators of such actions are often driven by antisemitic motives, aiming to cause distress to Jewish individuals and spread contempt. This incident is not isolated, as the Executive Council of Australian Jewry has recorded an average of over 170 incidents of anti-Jewish racist violence annually.
The Australian Civil Liberties Union, founded by John Bennett, has been identified as the first Australian group to actively engage in Holocaust denial. Bennett's publicity campaign in 1979 promoted Arthur Butz's pseudo-academic work, "Hoax of the Twentieth Century," which quickly became a handbook for antisemites. Holocaust denial propaganda has also targeted universities, with antisemitic leaflets strewn at two Melbourne universities in 2016. These leaflets, containing slogans such as "the greatest swindle of all time" and "Holohoax," were part of a nationally organized campaign to spread anti-Semitic conspiracies.
While Holocaust denial is not explicitly illegal in Australia, it is recognized as a form of racial vilification and the spread of hatred. The Australian Journal of Human Rights has published articles addressing this issue, highlighting the underlying antisemitism and harmful impact of Holocaust denial. Holocaust denial seeks to portray Jewish people as dishonest and deceitful, often claiming that they have fabricated the Holocaust for their own gain. This rhetoric contributes to a broader rise in anti-Jewish sentiment, as seen in the backlash against Channel 4's alternative Christmas message delivered by Stephen Fry.
The internet has exacerbated the issue, providing a platform for the rapid dissemination of Holocaust denial propaganda and the recruitment of individuals into denial organizations. While some countries, such as Germany and France, have criminalized Holocaust denial, other nations are still navigating the legal complexities surrounding free speech and hate speech. The legality of Holocaust denial varies internationally, with countries like Canada and the United States grappling with court cases and legislative debates on this issue.
The persistence of Holocaust denial and the associated hate mail sent to journalists in Melbourne underscore the ongoing struggle against antisemitism and the distortion of historical facts. It is crucial to address these incidents and challenge the harmful ideologies that fuel them.
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