Letter to Editor published in Bellingen Courier Sun - Lets stop the Hate Speech

_{Let’s Stop the Hate Speech}

_{published in Bellingen Courier Sun 27 March 2019}

_{I was born in Australia over 70 years ago. All of my life I have had to listen to so-called White Australians publicly denigrating people of all minority groups such as Muslims, Asians, Aboriginal people and gay people.}

_{When the use of this hate speech is so prevalent is it any wonder that this culminates in the appalling tragedy in Christchurch.}

_{Especially when this racist, bigoted and xenophobic language is fully embraced for purely political purposes by some of our leading politicians. When, for example, the Minister for Immigration hysterically and erroneously states that a small number of refugees from Manus Island and Nauru coming to our shores for urgent medical treatment will take our jobs, kick patients off hospital waiting lists and evict people out of their social housing. This is base politics at its lowest and most dangerous level.}

_{In the absence of any leadership from our politicians, we all, as citizens of this great country, need to take personal responsibility to avoid using racist and bigoted language and to condemn and call out all who resort to this hate speech.}

_{Paul Bartholomew}

_{Boambee East}