An alliance of organisations and individuals have formed the Unite Against Trump Alliance in Sydney to begin coordinating a protest against US President Donald Trump when he visits Australia in November. The following statement, initiated by outgoing NSW Greens Senator Lee Rhiannon, is being circulated for sign-ons in the lead up to protests that are being organised across the country, including in Cairns, Canberra and Brisbane.
To sign on to the statement, visit the Unite Against Trump Sydney Facebook page, where you can also see all the signatories.
***
Disgracefully, Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull has invited US President Donald Trump to visit Australia. This is likely to occur after the APEC summit in PNG in November.
Donald Trump is a racist, misogynist, lying billionaire who is trying to drag global politics to the far right. His brand of extreme nationalism, Islamophobia, greed, anti-refugee, anti-immigrant, anti-women, anti-LGBTI, anti-union and anti-environment rhetoric and policies are abhorrent to the majority of the Australian public.
The Turnbull government has aligned with Trump's bigoted and militaristic global agenda at every opportunity. We want to see Australia distanced from Trump's values. His values do not represent the interests of most people on the planet or the planet itself.
More than ever we need to join together in Australia and across borders to struggle for a world that respects the equal rights and wonderful diversity of humanity, protects our fragile environment and equitably shares the enormous wealth all around us.
We call on Malcolm Turnbull to rescind Trump's invitation to Australia and for the parliament to prohibit him from speaking if his visit goes ahead.
We pledge that if Trump does visit we will meet him with mass demonstrations to show our opposition to everything his Presidency stands for.
Signed:
Lee Rhiannon, Greens Senator for NSW
David Shoebridge, NSW Greens MLC
Sydney Stop the War Coalition
Imogen Grant, President, University of Sydney Students’ Representative Council
Stephen Smyth, President CFMEU Qld Energy and Mining Division
National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) NSW
Professor Raymond Evans, Griffith University
Jeff Sparrow, author and journalist
Antony Loewenstein, author and filmmaker
Stephen Jolly, Yarra Councillor and president of Victorian Socialists
Aran Mvlvaganam, Tamil Refugee Council spokesperson and Finances Sector Union organiser
Michael Thomson, NSW National Tertiary Education Union secretary
Craig McGregor, Victorian Allied Health Professionals Association secretary (VAHPA)
Latin American Social Forum (LASF)
Sue Bolton, Socialist Alliance councillor, Moreland City Council, Victoria
Victorian Socialists
Hersha Kadkol, National Ethno-Cultural Officer National Union of Students
Jasmine Duff & Kim Stern, National LGBTI Officers, National Union of Students
Zac Solomon, President UNSW Students’ Representative Council
Stuart Traill, Electricity Supply Industry Coordinator ETU (QLD and NT Branch)
Dr Peter Slezak, academic UNSW
Hanan Dover, Muslim Community Advocate
Whistleblowers, Activists and Citizens Alliance (WACA)
Lucia Sorber, Senior Lecturer and Chair of Arabic Studies Department University of Sydney Community Action Against Homophobia (CAAH)
Sydney University Education Action Group (EAG)
Nick Reimer, academic University of Sydney
University of Sydney Students’ Representative Council
Mark Pace, National Union of Students president
Leonie Hendricks, Retired NSW Nurses and Midwives Association state secretary
Lisa Milner, academic Southern Cross University
Leonie Hendricks, Queensland Greens/CPSU organiser
Jenny Haines, academic UTS
Jacob Grech, Renegade Activists
Barbara McGrady, Indigenous photojournalist
David Brophy, Academic University of Sydney
Kirra Jackson, Vice President UTS Student Union
Pauline Pants-down
Tim Nelthorpe, NUW organiser
Patricia Cornelius, playwright
Michael Schembri, advocate Finance Sector Union and gay left activist
Grandmothers Against Detention
Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine (CJPP)
Close The Camps Action Collective
Cathy Peters, Convenor Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine
Michael Brull, writer
Lizzie O’Shea, Social Justice Officer
Maurice Blackburn Lawyers
UNSW Education Collective
Palestine Action Group, Sydney (PAG)