Protest and performance

The fallout from the police response to Monday’s protests on the streets of Sydney continues to make headlines.

There have been many reasons put forward for the shocking scenes that rapidly spread across social media.  

Historian, Alex McDermott, points to civic decay driven by overseas grievances and digital echo chambers. Social justice expert at Edith Cowan University, Dr Piero Moraro, said the actions of NSW police reflected a "general, global trend" towards the militarisation of police. A crackdown on protests themselves was cited by SMH State Political Editor, Alexandra Smith.

This is not just an issue in Sydney, or in Australia. People protesting the actions of ICE officers in the US have been killed, and the death toll from protests in Iran is estimated at 30,000.

It is so widespread, it may appear the only safe place to mount a protest is the Super Bowl halftime show. Even then, Bad Bunny had to deal with criticism, threats, Kid Rock’s alternative performance, and the ridiculously named U.S. Rep. Randy Fine of Florida calling his celebration of diversity and resilience "illegal."

Back in Sydney, initial shock is giving way to a mix of analysis and anger. 

Part of the issue seems to be the replacement of nuance with performance in public discourse. 

Bold and easily understood rhetoric and action, such as clamping down on protests in the wake of terror, is rewarded with attention. As is proclaiming that Chris Minns is a fascist (as former Greens candidate Hannah Thomas did) or calling Australia a “spineless colony of the United States”, in the words of former Australian of the Year Grace Tame.

Protests themselves demonstrate this tendency - the peaceful majority are often ignored in favour of the much louder and more controversial few.

Nuance is always going to struggle in a world of fractured channels and relentless pace. But until we find a way to salvage at least some of it, it’s hard to see things getting better.