Bystander Intervention Program

Australian Intercultural Society and Jewish Community Council of Victoria invite you to:

Bystander Intervention Program

Date: Tuesday 28 June 2022     Time: 9:30am to 12:30pm
Location: Immigration Museum, 400 Flinders St, Melbourne 

Islamophobia and Antisemitism are prominent and serious issues for many community members across Victoria.  Anecdotal and evidence-based reporting suggests there has been a steady increase in incidents across Victoria both in cases reported and indeed in the number of cases which continue to go unreported. While there are reporting and complaint mechanisms for responding to vilification and abuse based on a person’s religion, communities experience barriers in responding.

This indicates that the majority of us, if witness to an antisemitic or Islamophobic incident, wouldn’t know what to do, and may even feel too scared to intervene and help those in need. Yet, past research indicates that bystander approaches were identified as holding promise in the primary prevention of race-based discrimination (2009, VicHealth & University of Melbourne).

As part of the Anti-Racism and Anti-Discrimination Action Plan, the Victorian Government is supporting key organisations to deliver community-led responses to Islamophobia and Antisemitism. This project is a collaborative initiative by the Jewish Community Council of Victoria (JCCV) & the Australian Intercultural Society (AIS) who have formed a united body aimed at addressing these issues. The project aims at empowering people to be active bystanders when confronted with Islamophobia or Antisemitism; trained to be confident and tooled-up to take a safe active stance when observing Antisemitism and Islamophobia.

The program will be delivered by ‘Courage to Care’.

Delivered across metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria, the half day programs will:

• Provide community-led responses to Islamophobia and Antisemitism
• Support people who have been subjected to Islamophobia and Antisemitism
• Support bystanders to respond to situations
• Raise awareness of issues and promote respectful behaviour and interfaith understanding

To register, click here. 

For more information please contact:
AIS: Ahmet Keskin 9867 2248 | akeskin@intercultural.org.au
JCCV : Joshua Goodman 0422 566 663 | joshua.goodman@jccv.org.au