“Democracy has its strength through the diversity of the community.”
- Don Dunstan
It’s been a sobering month. US president-elect Donald Trump will take power in 2025, promising to expand fossil fuel production, deport historically high numbers of people, and raise tariff walls. Beyond the Oval Office, his cabinet nominees have reactionary views on women’s rights and trans people.
The Trump agenda is unlikely to make life easier for ordinary Americans, but his relentless pitch to shake-up Washington was enticing to a large section of middle America. He tapped into real frustrations and economic hardship with a toxic playbook that is being examined closely by political operatives across the democratic world. It seems the more vulgar and extreme Trump has become, the more support he has received; the more he has targeted vulnerable groups, the broader his coalition of support.
Australia should not be complacent about the social rifts now entrenched in the US. Political leaders past and present have had electoral success in taking the low road; too often, social cohesion is a lesser consideration than political success. Political debate has been unhooked from civility and goodwill. A splintered media is increasingly playing a partisan game to build audiences, entrenching mistrust encouraged by culture warriors. Voters are behaving in complex ways (in the US elections, for example, some jurisdictions that swung towards Trump also voted in favour of pro-choice positions).
One of the few positives that may come out of these new political dynamics is a renewed focus on economic inequality. However, people who are struggling to get by deserve more than superficial populism. They should have a real political voice: they should be able to advocate successfully for policies and programs that make a real difference; they should feel empowered in their daily lives; they should be able to trust politicians to provide accurate information about the causes of economic injustice, rather than divisive fear tactics targeting vulnerable people. In a democracy, it’s crucial that extremism isn’t normalised.
In this febrile age, well-meaning decision-makers need support to get long-term, evidence-based policy up and running. This is where we – and you – have a role to play. In the coming months and over the next year, we’ll be developing policy ideas for our community to make South Australia a fairer place and to protect the rights of marginalised people. We’ll be embracing the diversity of our community, as Don Dunstan did, as a crucial aspect of democracy. He wanted South Australia to be a place where everyone was free to be themselves – and what better antidote could there be to partisan division?
David Washington
Executive Director
