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The Victorian government has enhanced its anti-vilification and social cohesion laws by passing legislation that features what MPs dubbed the “Sam Kerr clause”.
The Allan Labor government has taken a big step in strengthening its anti-vilification and social cohesion laws by enacting “landmark legislation” this week in Parliament.
The Justice Legislation Amendment (Anti-Vilification and Social Cohesion) Bill 2024 has introduced two new criminal offences relating to serious vilification:
It will constitute an offence to “incite hatred, serious contempt, revulsion or severe ridicule” against an individual or group based on their protected attributes.
It will constitute an offence to “threaten physical harm or property damage” against an individual or group based on their protected attributes.
The passed legislation has also broadened its scope of protection to encompass a wider array of marginalised communities. Previously, protections solely focused on race and religion, but it now addresses hate crimes motivated by “disability, gender identity, sex, sex characteristics, sexual orientation, and personal association with a person who has a protected attribute”.
The Victorian government articulated that this inclusive approach “means all Victorians will be protected against vilification and hate for who they are, what faith they follow, where they’re from or who they love or care for”.
Under the new laws, individuals found guilty of serious vilification offences, which encompass inciting hatred or issuing physical threats, could face up to five years of imprisonment.
To ensure the bill was passed, the Labor government allied with the Greens by agreeing to introduce amendments that mandate decision-makers to take into account the “social, historical and cultural context” of any offences when making decisions about vilification in both civil and criminal cases.
While considering the bill in Parliament, Animal Justice Party MP Georgie Purcell told The Guardian that it has been referred to as the “Sam Kerr clause”.
Sam Kerr, the captain of Australia’s women’s football team, the Matildas, was recently cleared of charges related to racially aggravated harassment against a police officer by a London court. Such comments were made after local police officers expressed scepticism over Kerr’s claims that she was being “held hostage” in a taxi.
“We recently saw in the Sam Kerr trial the way that laws designed to prevent vilification and discrimination can be weaponised against their intended purpose,” Purcell told The Guardian.
“It was important to many of us on the crossbench that these new laws were implemented to be accessible for the communities who need them while also not being exploited.”
The Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC) has warmly welcomed the new protections that the Allan government enacted, which serve to extend safeguards to individuals within the LGBTI and disability communities.
HRLC and various civil society organisations previously raised concerns to the Allan government regarding how the past legislation was being “misused to target political speech and the voices of marginalised and over-policed groups, which the laws were designed to protect”.
Sarah Schwartz, the legal director at the HRLC, said: “Every person should live a life free from violence, discrimination and vilification on the basis of their race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or ethnicity. This is particularly important for people who experience entrenched racism and disadvantage.
“Victoria’s anti-vilification laws will now provide stronger protections for everyone and signal that the Victorian community stands against all forms of vilification.
“The guardrails that have been put in place against the prosecution of political speech or the targeting of already over-policed communities are an important protection that should prevent police from misusing these laws,” Schwartz said.
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