Baby-faced Nazis give the sickening Hitler salute despite strict new laws banning symbols of hate
- Two youths give the Nazi salute in Melbourne
- The police talk to them and they move on
- Victoria considers banning the salute
Two young men blatantly gave the Hitler salute while wearing offensive T-shirts denying the Holocaust.
Police officers surrounded the pair in the middle of Melbourne’s CBD on Sunday as they laughed and took pictures of themselves with arms outstretched.
Despite Victoria passing strict new laws last June banning the swastika and other symbols of hate, the Nazi salute is not illegal.
The two men also wore red t-shirts that read ‘6 million? That’s a bit much mate,” which refers to the number of Jewish people killed by the Nazis during World War II.
Victorian police told Daily Mail Australia that police had spoken to the two men and asked them to move on, which they did.
Two young men blatantly gave the Hitler salute while wearing offensive T-shirts mocking the Holocaust
Following high-profile demonstrations by Nazi sympathizers in Melbourne earlier this year, Victoria’s Labor government announced it was working on legislation to ban gun salutes associated with the extremist movement.
On March 18, a group of about 30 black-clad Nazis marched up the steps of Victoria’s Parliament House and stood near a rally organized by visiting British anti-trans activist Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, also known as as Parker Posey.
In response to this provocation, Mr Andrews said the ‘anti-trans activists’ gathered to ‘spread hatred’.
“I wish it didn’t need to be said, but it clearly is: Nazis are not welcome. Not on the steps of Parliament. Nowhere,” he tweeted in March.
On 13 May, far-right anti-immigration protesters clashed with counter-demonstrators in the streets of Melbourne.
Police spoke to the two men in central Melbourne and asked them to move on, which they did
Police used pepper spray to disperse the hostile groups.
Since last June it has been illegal to display the Swastika in Victoria and anyone doing so without obtaining an exemption or permission could face a $22,000 fine or a year in prison.
NSW passed similar laws in August, with Queensland, Tasmania, Western Australia and South Australia also considering following suit.
A federal parliamentary committee is considering a bill introduced by shadow attorney general Michaelia Cash prohibits the display of Nazi insignia, including the swastika and Nazi salute, also with a prison sentence of up to 12 months.
Australia’s intelligence agency ASIO, which is charged with combating political violence, told the parliamentary inquiry that the ban would “help law enforcement with early intervention.”
On March 22, the opposition decided on an immediate ban on Nazi symbols, but the government reconciled, saying the legislation needed more time to be properly formulated.
A group of black-clad Nazis crashed at a March rally held by women’s rights activist Parker Posey in Melbourne
Victorian Prime Minister Daniel Andrews previously said it would be better if national laws banned the salute.
“I’m all for banning the Nazi salute,” he said.
“We have already banned Nazi swastikas. Look, our position on a lot of different things has always been that if you can have a nationally consistent approach, that’s usually better.”
‘But you don’t wait for a national consensus, because that can sometimes take an awful long time. Let’s see what happens outside Canberra.”