Sydney’s Jewish LGBTQ+ group will not participate in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade due to safety concerns.
Dayenu is a Jewish LGBTQ+ social club that has been participating in the Mardi Gras parade for 25 years.
The organisation explained that for Dayenu members the world had changed since the October 7 terror attacks, and that the “Australia Jewish community have experienced an increasingly dangerous antisemitic climate in Australia.”
“Our decision is the result of extensive consideration for the safety of not just our members, but that of spectators, participants, and volunteers in the shadow of the Bondi Terrorist attack on innocent Australian Jews, and the violent riot at Sydney Townhall,” said the committee in a statement.
The committee said they held dear their relationship with Mardi Gras and were grateful for the support of the organisation.
“Dayenu look forward to once again, participating in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade once civility and safety for all Jewish Australians returns.”
Speaking to The Jewish Independent, Dayenu said they had been considering whether to withdraw since the Bondi terror attack on December 14.
Speaking to Gay Sydney Daily today, Dayenu said the ongoing use of hate language, following the terror attack, revealed that nothing had changed in Sydney.
“Just as the ‘N’ word has become unacceptable, the chanting of ‘Globalise the intifada’ should be unacceptable,” they said.
“This term was shouted along the length of King Street towards Fair Day, a day that is supposed to celebrate diversity and love.”
The term Globalise the intifada has already been banned in Queensland and the U.K., with legislation before the NSW Parliament to have it banned here too.
A report on the term was presented to the Legislative Assembly, which found supporters of the ban say the phrase is “to bring the sort of death and destruction by way of acts of terrorism… that marked the second intifada between 2000 and 2005 in Israel to the streets of Sydney”.
While critics of the ban say the phrase is “commonly understood as a call for peaceful global solidarity and/or opposition to Israel’s violations of international law.”
Another key factor in the decision not to march was an injury that occurred in 2024 at the Mardi Gras Parade, when a group of pro-Palestine demonstrators entered the parade carrying a “queer Solidarity with Palestinian Resistance” banner.
The group entered the parade ahead of NSW Premier Chris Minns and the NSW Rainbow Labor float, lighting smoke flares, with six people charged by police as a result.
“It caused a volunteer to have an asthma attack and have to be hospitalized,” Dayenu’s spokesperson told The Jewish Independent.
That same year, Dayenu almost did not march at Mardi Gras following an open letter by then-CEO Gil Beckwith to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese calling for a ceasefire.
“We join, alongside global LGBTQIA+ communities, in supporting the international call for an immediate ceasefire, the delivery of humanitarian assistance and the immediate release of all hostages in the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” Beckwith wrote.
“We urge that the Australian government intervene and call for the Israeli forces to make every effort to protect the lives of civilians.”
The letter by Mardi Gras also raised concerns about the division the conflict was “causing here in Australia, with an increase in both Islamophobia and Antisemitism reported.”
However, in a statement to The Australian in 2024, Dayenu said that letter had left its members feeling isolated from the LGBTQIA+ community and had made them consider pulling out of Mardi Gras.
“At a time when our members are reporting feelings of distress and a sense of isolation from the LGBTQIA+ community and the wider community it is disappointing that Mardi Gras did not reach out to Dayenu prior to posting an open letter to the Prime Minister,” they said.
This year, Dayenu said it was with a heavy heart they made the decision to pull out, but did so out of safety.
“The decision not to march is primarily a safety issue, not just for our marchers but the public, parade participants, the police and Mardi Gras volunteers,” they said.
“The violent riot at Sydney Town Hall shows that even after 54 mostly Australian Jews where shot at Bondi and 14 died there is still a lust to attack anything Jewish in Sydney.”
That rally is currently under review by the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission following a significant number of complaints, “including incidents of alleged misconduct on the part of NSW police officers”.
Mardi Gras said they respected the decision made by Dayenu, and that the door was always open to them.
“The broader climate in Australia right now is complex and distressing for many communities. Our role is to deliver a safe Parade,” said a spokesperson.
“We work closely with community groups, event professionals and police to ensure strong safety planning, and we remain in open dialogue with any group that wants to participate.”
“Jewish LGBTQIA+ people absolutely belong at Mardi Gras, and the door remains open.”
