Rally not just for extremists

PREPARED for anything, I’d already made up my mind to keep to the outer and beat a hasty retreat at any sign of trouble. After all, the rhetoric from politicians and the media in relation to Melbourne’s freedom rallies had been less than favourable.

All those right-wing extremists, rabid anti-vaxxers, thugs and wild conspiracy theorists.

And not being extremist in anything, a pro-vaxxer and definitely into facts not theories, perhaps I shouldn’t have been there at all.

Truth is, I wanted to see for myself.

So, last Saturday, I travelled to Melbourne to attend one of the freedom rallies.

It was massive, it was loud and it was noisy with plenty of chanting of anti-government slogans and placards held high.

I should also point out, it was peaceful.

In an ocean of people of all ages, ethnicities, cultures and religions, they came from all walks of life. From young families with small children to teenagers, tradies, business operators, professionals and essential services to returned servicemen.

You name it, they were represented.

Along the 2.5km route from Parliament House to Flagstaff Gardens, I found a whole lot of ordinary, everyday Victorians, united in their opposition and concerns over the government’s handling of the pandemic.

Those concerns fell into four main categories — opposition to the state government’s new pandemic bill, mandatory vaccinations, vaccine passports and deep concerns over the forced vaccination of their children.

As we walked and talked, the flags of many different nations flew high above the crowd, a reflection of Victoria’s rich multicultural diversity. The same flags also a reminder of those who fled oppression in war-torn countries for a better life in Australia.

Along the way, there were lighthearted jibes about being labelled “right wing extremists”, knowing full well the most extreme thing many had ever taken part in was that demonstration.

Impossible to see above the crowd, it wasn’t until we reached Flagstaff Gardens, where people were still pouring in two hours later, it became possible to put an estimate on crowd size.

While the media played down numbers as being “in the thousands”, others placed it as being closer to 300,000. On a conservative estimate I would have put the number closer to 200,000, enough to fill the MCG twice on a grand final day.

It was the largest demonstration in Victoria since the Vietnam Moratorium in 1970, which drew 10,000 people rallying against Australia’s involvement in the Vietnam War. Yet despite this, last Saturday’s rally received barely a mention in the mainstream media.

In fact, the following day, the Sunday Herald Sun devoted its first five pages to former

Australian Test cricket captain

Tim Paine and his sexting saga.

It seemed a man texting a picture of his genitalia to another adult was far more newsworthy than what was potentially the largest single demonstration in Victorian history.

Now, the media has been dubbed “the sword arm of democracy”. It acts as a watchdog to protect public interest against malpractice and create public awareness. It also has the responsibility of promoting