They'e Not Idealists, They're Consumers
Apparently younger 'diverse' voters are split over the ALP. It paints a picture of young voters with muslim voters getting hot under the collar about how the ALP isn't doing enough about Palestine, with added disgruntlement about how the Fatima Payman business played out.
Asking young voters in Western Sydney about the Labor Party's treatment of now-independent senator Fatima Payman elicits responses ranging from anger to despair.
"I was devastated by what happened," 22-year-old Sophia Sarwary from Wentworthville told triple j Hack.
"When I saw her suspended, it made me super angry. It didn't make sense to me."
"She was just talking about Palestine, and nobody else [in Parliament] does," Sophia said.
"I think what this has symbolised for a lot of us that if someone chooses to say something different [from the Labor Party] then they will be punished," 22-year-old Rida Khan from Mt Druitt told Hack.
Mount Druitt - now there's a name. It's always been the place with the public school with the worst performing scores in the HSC, year after year, isn't it? Snark aside, these are pretty unintelligent comments. You get the feeling they don't really understand things like, rules and conventions. It's always about what they want first, with no circumspection about who else might have a stake in the same institution. I've already covered the abject stupidity of the Payman thing so I won't go into it, except to say it's striking how these young people are choosing to ignore that the Labor Party they disparage so much is the Australian Labor Party, and so will intend to rule for all Australians. It is not the Palestinian Labor Party, it is not the Diversity Party, It is not the Progressive Bleeding Hearts Party.
In a lifetime of living with progressive politics in this country, one is torn between the ethical idealism of the Greens and the realpolitik capacity of the ALP. Politics is famously the art of the possible. It's not going to go 100% your way al the time. So it is disturbing to see that these voters are insisting on putting Palestine and its fate front and centre in Australian politics, and get upset when somebody breaks the party rules and is suspended.
They don't seem to get that while Palestine might be the hot topic for them. Yet if you are from elsewhere in Australia yet still part of the broader left, it might not even register as a top 5 issue. Just off the top of my head I think there would Housing Crisis, Cost of Living, High Interest Rates, Student Debt, Global Warming, all sitting ahead of Palestine. I dare say even the war in Ukraine would sit ahead of what is going on in Gaza. If they expect Palestine to be front and centre, it's they who are not paying attention to the rest of the country.
The war has been a mobilising force for many younger voters — and not just those from diverse backgrounds.
"We've seen the true colours of what Labor is," Sophia said. "I do think that people who originally voted for Labor will change their mind."
"Historically my family and extended family always voted Labor, and so have my friends and their families, especially in Mt Druitt," Rida said.
"I know my parents are no longer going to be voting Labor due to their stance on Palestine. What we feel is that they haven't taken enough action."
What exactly are they expecting? The way democracy works is that they have to convince their fellow Labor Party members that this is indeed important. It's going to be frustrating and tiresome, but that's what it takes.
But pushing for change comes at a huge personal cost, and frustration at what she perceives as a lack of movement on Palestinian rights and recognition of Palestinian statehood by the parliamentary wing of the Labor Party has made Yusra reassess.
"Personally, I have been asking myself a lot of questions about whether I will continue to be a member."
It hurts that these idiots are part of this democracy and their votes count - but that is the deal. One person, one vote. The problem with these people is that they want the ALP to suddenly turn into a single issue party galvanised around Palestine, and when it doesn't they get all huffy and say the ALP is wrong for not doing so. I don't hear these same people campaigning for the people of Ukraine. Why is it that the crisis is in Gaza gets a higher slot in the priority stakes over Ukraine with these people? Isn't it because they feel like some sort of kinship with the fellow Muslims and not at all for the East Europeans? Isn't it equally arguable that the ALP should be doing more about Ukraine? After all the Russians are bombing children's hospitals just like the Israelis are doing in Gaza - and possibly without any justification at all whereas at least the Israelis have the fig leaf of saying Hamas is hiding in children's hospitals.
That is all just distraction in the scheme of things. This diverse young demographic doesn't care for Ukraine because it's not about them enough. The truth is, these people are treating politics like they're consumers. They want to pick a party based on the ingredients on the wrapping, when in reality it is a lot more subtle and difficult. But it is a special kind of stupid that wants to reduce things to simple slogans and single issue politics. If this is the way the diverse young are thinking, I hate to say it but the future of this country is bleak.
Blaxland Voters' Blues
The ALP's primary vote is static and declining. The Greens are growing on the back of collecting the young progressive vote. Apparently, Blaxland is the case in point where the ALP really needs to reach out to the diverse, young women who are not all alike but mysteriously in favour of Fatima Payman crossing the floor.
The suspension of Fatima Payman from the federal Labor Caucus. Over the past few months, we interviewed dozens of young Australian Muslim women, all born in Australia. Their main points were striking:
- They have faced social abuse throughout their lives.
- They are regularly reminded of their perceived inferiority.
- They lack a political voice. When they attempt to speak up, alert, or draw attention to their disadvantages, the society they were born into, grew up in, and now raise their own children in demands their silence.
My message to Federal Labor - bring your A game to the next election in your diverse electorates because they may indeed be on fire. Crazy brave stuff here.
This made me ask if I would want these votes if they're already so hostile. I kind of feel like if the ALP is not their cup of tea, that's fine. They can go vote for the Libs and find out how that goes - because voting for the Greens will only mean their votes will preference to the ALP in Blaxland. Maybe these young diverse women who like Fatima Payman so much will find it better on the conservative side of politics? After all if it wasn't for the blatant self-interest involved in pushing the progressive wheelbarrow, the other aspects of their lives are pretty socially conservative. The only reason they vote progressive is because they know the Liberal Party is white, blond, and contemptuous of Muslims. But otherwise, they actually share more values in common with the conservative voters of this country than the progressives.
I hate to break it to the ALP but maybe they just need to let these diverse young voters decide for themselves what exactly is their political priority. If it is to punish the ALP for not being Pro-Palestinian enough, then so be it - let them vote Greens or for their own local single-issue candidate. It would suck for Jason Clare, but really, this is the only way it can go. The ALP can't afford to be held hostage by a token diverse young senator who turned out to be a single issue candidate, if the ALP is going to govern for all.
Sometimes principles mean something. They've got theirs, you've got yours. Let these voters walk. This is why I don't believe Fatima Payman at all when she goes on a bout ALP values and how she supports them. Her actions patently demonstrate that's all utter horseshit. Her values, whatever they are, lie elsewhere.
Where The White People Live
I was on the train one morning as it pulled out of Bankstown. A group of Year 12 girls were seated next to me talking about what they wanted to do after they finished the HSC. They had their hijabs on and had matching school bags and matching iPhone cases. One of them said they wanted to take a gap year; another pointed out that more than half the girls who take a gap year get married during that year. One of the girls said she wanted to move to a beachside suburb. The other girls agreed. The last one to open their mouth said she wanted to move to Manly where there are cafes, and "where the white people live".
I'm not making this up.
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