An inquiry by the NSW Parliament into far-right extremism has found that LGBTQ+ are targets of right-wing extremism alongside other minority groups.
The inquiry into far-right wing extremism was conducted by the Legislative Assembly Committee on Law and Safety following a demonstration by a neo-Nazi group outside Parliament House last year.
The committee has published its final report making 12 recommendations that address the causes of hate and extremism and provides pathways to deradicalisation.
“Right-wing extremism is a present and growing threat to the people of New South Wales,” said Committee Chair Edmond Atalla.
“The neo-Nazi rally outside Parliament House in November last year was a wake-up call to this threat.”
The report’s top finding was that right-wing extremism posed a threat to all NSW communities.
“Rooted in white supremacy and antisemitism, it poses a particular threat to Jewish communities and other ethnic and religious minorities, as well as LGBTQIA+ people and women,” it reads.
It proceeded to detail a number of incidents where vulnerable communities had been targeted by right-wing extremists including a neo-Nazi demonstration at a queer film festival in Albury in 2024.
Equality Australia submitted a report to the inquiry saying that “neo-Nazi opposition to LGBTQIA+ people has resulted in ‘intimidation, harassment and violence against LGBTQIA+ individuals and spaces across NSW.”
In particular, the report noted specific anti-trans hate was being spread by far-right extremists.
Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown said she was pleased to see their submission reflected in the report and that LGBTQ+ were “explicitly recognised among communities targeted by hate and extremism.”
“This is an important acknowledgement of the scale and impact of anti-LGBTIQ+ hate within broader extremist activity in NSW.”
Brown said she welcome the findings of the inquiry as it made it clear the threat of the far-right.
“The inquiry makes clear that LGBTIQ+ people are deliberately targeted within extremist narratives that seek to normalise hate in public discourse,” she said.
“It also recognises that addressing extremism requires more than law enforcement, it must include action on the social drivers that enable it.”
The report made a number of recommendations with a key one being to fund community reporting services for hate crimes experienced by LGBTQ+ people and other communities.
This was one of the suggestions by Equality Australia given that a lack of trust in statutory agencies still presents a barrier for LGBTQ+ people in reporting hate crime incidents.
It also recommended the government strengthen early intervention and prevention programs as well as introducing school-based education addressing discrimination including homophobia and transphobia.
Brown said she welcomed the recommendations and called on the government to act.
“These recommendations reflect a clear understanding that hate and extremism are driven by broader systems of discrimination and exclusion. They must now be implemented in full,” she said.
“The NSW Government must act to ensure that LGBTIQ+ people and other targeted communities are safer, better supported and no longer exposed to preventable harm.”
The government now has until October to respond to the report.
