Racial tension erupted into violence in Sydney

[kpete]

Racial tensions spark Sydney beach violence
11 Dec 2005 15:22:04 GMT

Source: Reuters

(Updates violence hits 2nd beach, more arrests, more quotes)

By Michael Perry

SYDNEY, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Racial tension erupted into violence on a Sydney beach on Sunday when around 5,000 people, some yelling racist chants, attacked youths of a Middle Eastern background, saying they were defending their stretch of beach.

Thousands of local surfers and beachgoers gathered at Cronulla Beach after two young lifesavers were attacked last Sunday by a group of young men from Sydney's western suburbs.

Drunken youths chased and attacked Australians of Middle East appearance at the beach in Sydney's south, sending some cowering into shops and hotels for safety, as riot police and dog squads tried to stop the violence.

By Sunday night, violence had spread to a second beach, Maroubra, where men armed with baseball bats smashed cars. Police said a man was stabbed in the back in south Sydney in what media reports said appeared to be further racial violence.

As the crowd moved along the beach and foreshore, one man on the back of a truck shouted: "No more Lebs (Lebanese)" -- a chant picked up by the group around him. Others carried Australian flags and dressed in Australian sports shirts.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SYD267856.htm

[Kipling]

1. Sounds nasty.

I'm sure that Howard bastard is laughing, though.

[hwmnbn]

2. Something similar happened here in 1919....

http://www.chipublib.org/004chicago/disasters/riots_race.html

Something about beaches and race that is downright ugly and primal.

[JAbuchan08]

3. I can't figure Australia out

sometimes they seem to be exactly like the US in terms of their degreee of support for the war and for their embattled (yet still reelected) president.

On the other hand I've heard of US exchange students being harassed at Australian universities because of the Iraq war.

So which is it? Where does Australia's public opinion fall?

[Orrin_73]

4. here is another link

The president of the Islamic Friendship Association of Australia, Keysar Trad, said the violence was "bound to happen" after callers to some radio talk shows whipped up ethnic tensions following the attack last weekend.

Racial tensions spark riots on Australian beach

right wing talk radio, that explains a lot