The beloved Enmore Theatre in Sydney’s Inner West is platforming far-right, Zionist ideologue, Douglas Murray. Murray has been providing ideological fodder for Israel’s genocide in Gaza since October 7. 

He will appear as a guest of former ABC radio broadcaster, Josh Szeps whose “Uncomfortable Conversations Live” tour with Murray is promoted by Teg Dainty. This goes well beyond what can be called an “uncomfortable conversation.” Murray promotes hate, racism, and genocide.

We must not allow this to happen in our backyard. Local support for this petition can ensure Douglas Murray does not get the opportunity to spread his hate in the Inner West. 

This has been proven to work before: In February, Murray was set to host an event at the Apollo Theatre in London to raise money for the Israeli Defence Force. The event was cancelled when workers at the Apollo refused to work on the night in solidarity with Palestine.

We the undersigned call for:

The Enmore Theatre to cancel all scheduled events platforming Douglas Murray.
The Enmore Theatre to commit to not scheduling any future events platform Douglas Murray.
The Enmore Theatre to issue an apology to the community for its intention to platform Douglas Murray. 
Who is Douglas Murray?

Douglas Murray is the Associate Editor of the British-based magazine, The Spectator, a right-wing publication whose mainstream reputation gives the racist, imperialist, pro-colonialist, transphobic views of its contributors a veneer of respectability. Its Australian edition has been described by Crikey magazine as an outlet that “keeps publishing white supremacists and anti-Semites”.

As an author, Murray’s books, with titles such as War on the West, have played an outsized role, along with his regular media appearances, in fomenting anti-immigration, Islamophobic, antiblack, European civilisational moral panics.

Zionist Propagandist 

After October 7, Murray deployed to the Gaza envelope to report, writing a “wartime diary” and making videos, making Zionist propaganda and justifying the genocide which, to date, has killed over 30,000 Palestinan people. Murray joined the Israeli government and military in proclaiming Palestinians as ‘barbaric’ and making statements such as: 

“Muslims don’t care about other Muslims, Arabs don’t care about other Arabs. Nobody cares about the Palestinians… Yet whenever the Israelis do anything, the Muslims across the West come out on the streets, because they hate the Jews.”

In a widely shared article in The Jewish Chronicle, Murray wrote: “the civilised world should seek revenge… back Israel and back the destruction of Hamas.” It is right to do so because “nothing could surpass the barbarism of what Hamas did” on October 7. No venue should host a speaker that espouses such colonial and racist rhetoric.

Holocaust Revisionism

Murray engaged in unabashed Holocaust revisionism by claiming that Hamas had surpassed the Nazis in their evil because the Nazis were “rarely proud” of “shooting Jews in the back of the head all day and kicking their bodies into pits.” 

Murray has form when it comes to denying the Holocaust. His speech at the National Conservatism Conference in London in 2023 was widely condemned after he said that “even if the Third Reich had ‘mucked up’ a bit, there was nothing inherently wrong with nationalism.”

At a time when the International Court of Justice has found there are grounds for Israel to be tried for genocide, Murray continues to celebrate Israel’s violence. As we write, more than a million people are being bombed in their last place of refuge, with aid sitting less than 5km away.

This decision by the Enmore Theatre to platform Murray is an affront to the diverse and progressive community which has helped it to thrive and become the Inner West hallmark we love today.

What are we calling on you to do?

We believe that anyone using their platform to spread misinformation and hate, and promote Israel’s genocide in Gaza should be held to account. Douglas Murray is not welcome in our community. 

Sign this petition to call on the Enmore Theatre to refuse to collaborate with Zionist propagandist, racist, Islamophobe, Douglas Murray. 
Contact the Enmore Theatre owners, Century Venues, on (02) 9519 9231 or via their contact page and ask them to drop Murray.
 

Organised collaboratively by Tzedek Collective and Flora & Fauna.