Mick Stacey, Ocean Shores
We hear a lot in the media about the atrocities perpetrated towards women in the Islamic world, the fundamentalist Taliban etc…
We hear a lot in The Echo about the atrocities against Palestinians, by the Zionist Israeli government.
What we don’t hear about is the terrible violent oppression, waged against women in Israel, from the religious fanatical Haredi, who seem to have an enormous influence on the so-called secular Israeli government. Where women are segregated on public transport, supermarkets, post offices, banks, even on the streets etc, and physically assaulted if they disobey their fanatical laws.
Echoes of the racist southern USA or South Africa’s apartheid, or Australia’s policies towards First Nation peoples, not so long ago.
Here at home, there are plenty examples of discrimination towards First Nation peoples, women, youth, elderly, disabled, cannabis users, protesters, refugees etc, etc. Just your appearance can prohibit you from certain places; that’s happened to me on many occasions. I’m male, but have an effeminate appearance with long hair, clothes and jewellery. Not so long ago it was gay people; thank goodness that’s changing.
All this discrimination comes from extremism, much of it religious. Right now we have an extremist as Special Envoy to Indigenous Affairs. How did that happen?
Surely we can do better than this. We need a bill of rights to protect us all.
Read: The War on Women in Israel by Elana Maryles Sztokman (in the library).
Love is the answer.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
