Just Words

Missing your Just Words fix? We've got something else to fill your podcast app. Introducing a new season of All Things Equal. This series will take you into the school yard and beyond, where kids learn that things aren't always fair. Through the stories of real students and staff, Uniform will change the way you think about education; because when it comes to learning, one size does not fit all. Subscribe to All Things Equal in your favourite podcast app, or listen to the show here: https://www.whooshkaa.com/shows/after-metoo-stories-of-social-change

A few weeks ago we broke out of the 2ser studios and headed down the road to our friends at 107 projects in Redfern, Sydney for the Just Words live event, sponsored by Audiocraft. We were overwhelmed when more than 100 of you turned up to sit in the dark and listen to us make a podcast as we put 18C on trial for 'murdering' free speech. In our very last episode of Just Words  you will hear some familiar voices and some that are brand new to the series. Thank you if you came along and for those of you just catching up now, you are in for a treat! As the event was recorded live the sound is not as crisp as we usually like it, but we hope you feel like you are in the room.

To celebrate the success of Just Words, 2SER 107.3 has teamed up with Audiocraft to present a live listening event at 107 Projects this Thursday May 18th We are excited to announce that we will be joined on the night by special live guest Jeremy Jones, Director of International & Community Affairs at the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC). Jones is no stranger to 18C - in fact, he has filed the most cases under the Racial Discrimination Act in Australia, using 18C to protect the Jewish community against anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial.  Join the 2SER team as we record the final episode of Just Words live on stage,  and put 18C on trial  one last time, to determine if our race hate laws really did murder free speech.  DETAILS Event: Audiocraft Presents: 2SER 107.3's Just Words Date: Thursday 18th May, 7pm Venue: 107 Projects (107 Redfern St, Redfern 2016) Tickets: available online or at the door Join the event on Facebook

Audiocraft Presents: 2SER's Just Words To celebrate the success of 2SER's first ever investigative podcast series Just Words, Audiocraft are teaming up with Sydney community radio station 2SER 107.3 for a live listening event. Just Words goes beyond the hype and headlines of Australia's racial discrimination laws. Watch the 2SER team record their final episode, live at 107 Projects as they put 18C on trial and determine if our race hate laws really did murder free speech. Doors open at 7pm, show starts 7.15pm. On Thursday 18 May 2017 LOCATION107 Projects 107 Redfern Street, Redfern, NSW 2016 CONTACT DETAILSAmy Willing: amy@107.org.au TICKETS$12 Concession $15 FULL BOOK NOW: HTTPS://WWW.TRYBOOKING.COM/BOOK/EVENT?EID=275956

A low lying fence and a prejudiced neighbour see years of racial slurs rain down on an Aboriginal family. So how does 18C help to end racial abuse for everyday Australians?  In  2SER's last episode of Just Words, we look at a little known 18C case that plays out in the front yards of a suburban street in Western Australia. 

This is the story of what happens when a free speech advocate attempts to use 18C to restrict what another person can say.   In August 2016, Liberal Democrat David Leyonhjelm was interviewed on the ABC's Insiders where he said offence is always taken, not given and if you don't want to be offended by something that is up to you. Fairfax journalist Mark Kenny happened to be watching that very interview and decided to test Leyonhjelm's proposition to the fullest. The result was a colourful 18C case that showed just how the law is working.

On March 30, a  late-night debate  in the Senate saw the  Government's attempt to change section 18C of the  Racial Discrimination Act reach defeat, after an alliance by Labor, Greens, Nick Xenophon's team and Jacqui Lambie, voted down the proposed changes - 31 to 28. This means that the plan to remove 'offend, insult or humiliate" from section 18C and replace it with the term "harass" will no longer go ahead. Although we do expect to see some changes to the processes of the Human Rights Commission. Just Words producer Myles Houlbrook-Walk spoke to Senator David Leyonhjelm on March 21,  a week prior to the bills defeat.

Just Words spoke to 18C plaintiff Jeremy Jones, who has used racial hatred laws to fight anti-Semitism since the section was introduced over 20 years ago. Jones is concerned that the proposed draft laws will open the flood gates when it comes to racist speech. He says the Coalition Government's plan to remove 'offend, insult and humiliate' and replace it with the term 'harass', as well as to more narrowly define the term 'intimidate' is a sign of 'immoral' leadership. Will the proposed changes to 18C still capture the concept of Holocaust denial? Just Words producer Anthony Dockrill spoke to Jeremy Jones, Director at the Australian Israel and Jewish Affairs Council on Wednesday 22 March, the day after Malcolm Turnbull flagged changes to Australia's race hate laws.

On March 21, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced a potential watering down of the controversial Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. Under the proposal the words "offend, insult, humiliate" will be replaced by "harass". The reforms were debated in the Senate on Tuesday, but little attention has been given to proposed procedural changes to the Australian Human Rights Commission, which will not only apply to 18C complaints but all complaints of discrimination handled by the Commission, including, sex, age, disability and race. Experts say this could make it more difficult for vulnerable members of the community to make complaints of vilification and discrimination. Just Words  host Nic Healey spoke to  Luke McNamara, Professor of Law from the University of New South Wales about the proposed 18C reforms and what they could really mean. Just Words Podcast Extra produced by Emma Lancaster

It's a case that asks more questions than it answers. In 2013, three non-Indigenous students walked into an Indigenous computer lab. What happened next nobody could have predicted. The court documents tell you that the case was Cynthia Prior against the Queensland University of Technology and three students. But the media conducted their own trial, and put the Human Rights Commission on the stand.

Very few comedians have made an impression on the Aboriginal community in the way King Billy Cokebottle has. From radio to pubs to nightclubs, King Billy was one of Australia's most established and renowned underground comedians. But that all changed when an 18C claim was brought against him. This is the story of a comedian, an activist and a mudcrab, and is one of the few 18C cases to successfully use the exemptions of 18D. 

The case of Eatock and Bolt is what catapulted 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act into the media spotlight and fanned the flames that reignited the culture wars over this 20 year old piece of legislation. Despite what you may have read in the headlines, this case is really about some  lazy journalism and the idea of where your identity comes from.

Is your right to offend greater than someone else's right not to be racially vilified? For over 20 years Australia has had a law that makes it illegal to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate someone because of their race. Our expert panel dissects the 18C Inquiry report that was tabled in Parliament on Tuesday February 28th. Hosted by Nic Healey, our experts include : Professor Adrienne Stone - Chair at Melbourne Law School, Melbourne University Simon Breheny - Director of Policy at the Institute of Public Affairs. Dr. Linda Tucker - Employment and Discrimination Solicitor for Redfern Legal Centre. The Committee made 22 recommendations, but they stopped short of calling to axe section 18C, instead putting forward a 'shopping list' of options ranging from leaving the section unchanged to replacing the words "offend", "insult" and "humiliate" with the word "harass". This puts Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in a difficult position as it will now be up to him to decide whether to make any change to the law.

This is the story of a holocaust denier, a holocaust survivor and the man who made it his mission to put himself in-between the two. Australia isn't like other countries around the world where holocaust denial is a crime. In fact there were almost no ways to legally challenge holocaust denial until section 18C was introduced in 1994. 

A new podcast series from 2SER 107.3FM