"The #Hanukkah attack did not come out of nowhere. #Antisemitism in #Australia was never abstract to me; it was visible and real. As a child, I remember #yeshiva students being harassed while walking down the street wearing #kippot, and car-bombing scares near a #Jewish institution in #Melbourne. Even when I didn’t fully grasp their seriousness, these incidents became part of the background noise of growing up Jewish in Australia.
#Oct7 marked a turning point, when the intensifying antisemitism across the country reached a fever pitch that has not abated. My mother and one of my brothers live within walking distance of Adass Israel #Synagogue, which was set on fire in 2024. In a separate incident that same year, East Melbourne #Hebrew Congregation was also set on fire during a Friday night gathering. These attacks were not distant news stories; they struck close to the places and people I know and love."
https://stljewishlight.org/opinion/commentary/the-australia-i-knew-and-the-one-we-face-today/