Letter to Minister Dutton - public discourse 20 March 2019

From: Mike Griffin
Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2019 4:18 PM
To: 'Peter.Dutton.MP@aph.gov.au' <Peter.Dutton.MP@aph.gov.au>
Subject: public discourse

Dear Minister Dutton,

I listened with interest to your interview on Radio National earlier in the week, in relation to the Christchurch tragedy.  Predictably, you refused to answer the direct questions about how you, and other politicians on the right, might share some responsibility for the normalization of anti-Muslim and racist discourse in Australia. 

Rather than share some responsibility for helping to create a climate of fear and mistrust, you  chose to put on a show of confected outrage at the mere suggestion that some politicians like yourself might have some questions to answer, preferring instead to equate the legitimate concerns of Richard Di Natale and Mehreen Faruqi with the racist rantings of Frazer Anning.

This is nonsense, as you well know. Let’s not forget that it was you who warned us darkly about the danger of “single males”, “rapists” and “paedophiles” finding their way to our shores. 

It was you who sought to convince us that the refugees on Manus and Nauru would take our jobs, live on the dole, kick patients off waiting lists and kick people out of social housing.  

You have spent years, as a senior government politician, sowing the politics of fear and discord at every opportunity, often aided and abetted by your good friend Alan Jones, who I note has donated $10,000 to the re-election campaign of Pauline Hanson. 

I do hope that the tragic events of Christchurch will give you pause for thought. You might start by making a commitment not to participate in Alan Jones’ utterly unpleasant and race-baiting programmes between now and the federal election.

Yours sincerely,

Mike Griffin

Valla Beach NSW 2448.