AUSTRALIA - Far-right extremists hijacked tradie Covid anger to fuel chaos and groom new recruits, expert claims
"Construction union condemns 'neo-Nazis' at Melbourne vaccine mandate protest"
Groups of political extremists and conspiracy theorists are capitalising on Covid fear and anger to “groom” recruits and fuel chaos.
Shannon Molloy September 22, 2021 - 8:45PM
VIDEO - Violent scenes have continued in Melbourne for a second day as construction workers protest mandatory vaccinations.
Extremists with chilling ulterior motives are capitalising on the potent fear and anger sparked by the Covid-19 pandemic to “groom” recruits and fuel chaos throughout Australia, an expert says.
Scenes from Melbourne .. https://www.news.com.au/topics/melbourne .. showing thousands of fluoro-clad rioters tearing through the CBD for three consecutive days have horrified many watching on.
The behaviour has been roundly condemned by authorities, the trade union movement and Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, who said he was left sickened by what took place.
Josh Roose, an expert on politics and extremism and a senior research fellow at Deakin University, said he found this week’s chaos in Melbourne completely unsurprising.
“Far-right nationalists, anti-vaxxers, libertarians and conspiracy theorists have come together over Covid and capitalised on the anger and uncertainty simmering in some sections of the community,” he wrote in an article today for The Conversation.
“They appear to have found fertile ground particularly among men who feel alienated, fearful about their employment and who spend a lot of time at home scrolling social media and encrypted messaging apps.”
A man wearing a Guy Fawkes mask waves a flare during a wild protest in Melbourne on Tuesday. Picture: Aaron Francis
A massive and violent protest tore through Melbourne on Tuesday, sparking chaos and mayhem. Picture: Getty Images
Not just tradies raging
[That comment i see as a Murdoch-like nudge. This is his paper and am surprised the article is not subscription blocked. Most all i've hit have been.
Actually there would be very few union tradies raging. If any. The unions involved are all in favor of vaccination and have be proactive on, mostly left open until now, construction sites. ]
FROM news.com.au
On Monday, a snap gathering of a few hundred men outside the office of the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) was apparently attended by many tradies.
But CFMEU boss John Setka and Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) secretary Sally McManus were quick to claim the mob consisted primarily of right-wing extremists including neo-Nazis.
Tuesday’s crowd was much bigger and much angrier, and Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said “a range of people” had involved themselves – not just tradies.
“We know from what we have been monitoring that people are being encouraged to put on high-vis gear, to put on workwear, to come in under the cover of a crowd,” Chief Commissioner Patton said.
“They’re not necessarily tradespeople, but people who are tied up with the Freedom Rally, people who are tied up with other issue-motivated groups who seek to hide under the cover of this demonstration.”
Unions insist the vast majority of protesters aren’t tradies but anti-vaxxers and right-wing extremists. Picture: Getty Images
The three days of rage follows a rally in Victoria’s capital on Saturday against vaccinations and Covid lockdowns that also turned violent, with several police attacked and hospitalised with injuries, including broken bones.
In that instance, a number of people donned high-visibility workwear while others were spotted wearing swastikas and other Nazi paraphernalia.
One man was photographed waving a large Donald Trump flag.
“Among the protesters there was a really conscious effort to represent themselves as tradies and workers,” Dr Roose said of that demonstration.
“Some observed protest organisers encouraging people to wear hi-vis clothing to these rallies.
“It’s important to note the construction industry and trade union movement in general are incredibly diverse, and there will be different and competing views around vaccines, masks and lockdowns.
“Some of these protesters actually are tradies, some may not be. Some are union members, others are not.
“But the broader point is there is a group of people who are incredibly angry about the situation they find themselves in, and resentment is proving fertile terrain for organised groups.”
The inflaming of tensions by outside forces that led to yesterday’s chaos isn’t new.
Roadmap out of lockdown[inside]
Mobilising frustrated young men
The ‘fake tradies’ component of the chaos on Monday and Tuesday is a “continuum” rather than “unrelated incidents”, Dr Roose said.
“This week’s protests are related to anti-lockdown protests held in 2020, and earlier this year,” he said.
Anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination protests, organised and attended largely by conspiracy theorists, have been seen across the country since the start of the pandemic.
“Some were just upset by lockdowns but most of the planning conversation online was being led by anti-vaxxers and QAnon activists,” Dr Roose said.
“These movements thrive on anxiety, anger, a sense of alienation, a distrust in government and institutions. It’s really no coincidence this is occurring most vigorously in Melbourne given what this city has been through with lockdowns.
“It has really built momentum over the last year and, more recently, been infiltrated by far-right groups.”
A massive police presence has met protesters on Wednesday who gathered again in Melbourne. Picture: Aaron Francis
One of the men who gathered in Melbourne on Tuesday. Picture: AFP
Protesters swarmed the West Gate Bridge and occupied it for two hours, sparking traffic chaos through Melbourne. Picture: Getty Images
Dr Roose described the targeting of disenfranchised people as a kind of “grooming” event by individuals and groups with ulterior motives.
“I have observed in my research the far-right consciously appropriating the language of anti-vaxxers, of the conspiracy movements, seeking to exploit their anger and distrust.
“I spend a lot of time on the encrypted messaging groups used by these groups and in the online spaces where they organise. I have seen the same names popping up, and growing use of hard right or far-right national socialist iconography.
“It is almost like grooming. The far-right are a lot more capable of recruitment than we give them credit for.”
And a cohort ripe for the picking, so to speak, are angry young men, he said.
“They have found an audience who are angry, frustrated and looking for someone to blame.
“This is particularly the case among young men who are increasingly attracted to right wing nationalism and make up the majority of protesters.
“Victoria Police Commissioner Shane Patton has said the majority of protesters at the Saturday protest were men aged 25 to 40, who came with violent intent.”
Anti-vaccination and anti-lockdown protests have been held across Australia throughout the year. Picture: AFP
Foreign actors fanning the flames
An ugly anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination protest in Sydney in late July saw hundreds rampage through the city, destroying property and attacking police.
That wild demonstration was organised in part by a German conspiracy group called Worldwide Demonstration, which has tens of thousands of Facebook and Telegram followers and seeks to promote Covid scepticism via public protest.
At the start of September, another protest in Sydney targeting local council chambers across the city was also co-ordinated online “by someone who wasn’t even in the country”, police said.
“International interference is a line of inquiry into the statewide protests,” authorities told NCA NewsWire.
Movements have been hijacked by far-right extremists, experts say, as a way of recruiting supporters. Picture: AFP
Covid provides a perfect cover
Far-right groups believe that politicians and other “elites” seek to oppress people and suppress freedom in order to gain control.
In order to avoid disaster, people must fight back and “stand up for liberty” against the “wealthy and unelected ruling class” seeking to take over, they tell their followers.
“Covid – with all the fear, uncertainty, lockdowns, policing and employment impacts it brings – has helped bring these groups together,” Dr Roose said.
“The far-right has really sought to mobilise frustrated people and push them more toward right-wing narratives, particularly white nationalist narratives.”
Conspiracy theorists have become much more visible during the Covid-19 pandemic. Picture: Bianca De Marchi
Earlier this year, authorities warned that extremist groups were “exploiting” anger, confusion and concern about coronavirus to radicalise Australians.
In particular, far-right figures were seeking to infiltrate existing movements – including alternative medicine circles – to promote white supremacy and neo-Nazi ideals.
That was the warning from Victoria Police to a state parliamentary inquiry into extremism and its risk to national security.
“Continued restrictions and border closures despite relatively low Covid-19 cases has continued to fuel the perception that restrictions are primarily a tool for authoritarian control, rather than for prevention of the spread of Covid-19,” it said in a submission.
“Individuals traditionally holding right-wing extremist or left-wing extremist ideologies join online extremist and/or conspiracy groups that espouse conflating ideologies.
“For law enforcement, this has presented a challenge in effectively tasking and investigating these individuals as they do not fit neatly into pre-existing tasking and co-ordination frameworks.”
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