WEDNESDAY, 6 August 2025
The Anti-Discrimination Board of NSW has accepted a formal complaint of racial and religious vilification against the Australian Jewish Association Incorporated (AJA) and its affiliated registered charity, Australian Jewish Association Tzedakah Incorporated (AJAT). The complaint is one of the first to be made under the newly enacted religious vilification provision in the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977.
The complaint concerns conduct by AJA between 4 July 2024 and 4 February 2025 and was lodged by Mr Kassem Chalabi, a Palestinian Muslim man living in New South Wales, who alleges that both AJA and AJAT engaged in serious and repeated public acts of racial and religious vilification.
Legal representation is being provided by Birchgrove Legal, with barrister Bilal Rauf briefed as Counsel.
The 58-page complaint details nine alleged acts of racial vilification and seven acts of religious vilification, primarily disseminated through social media platforms including X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram. The posts are alleged to incite hatred, serious contempt, and/or severe ridicule of persons on the basis of their Palestinian identity and/or Muslim faith.
Mr. Chalabi said the frequency and tone of the communications left him feeling isolated and unsafe—especially at a time of deep grief for Palestinians worldwide.
“These are cruel, disgusting attacks on who we are,” he said. “They came while Palestinians here and around the world are mourning the immense suffering in Gaza.”
“As a grandfather, father, a husband, and a proud Palestinian Muslim, I couldn’t stay silent.”
“This is also a message to those who have legitimised this rhetoric by welcoming AJA to speak—parliamentary committees, politicians, media platforms, and the charities regulator. If you won’t call it racist unless we prove it in court, then that’s exactly what we’ll do.”
“I believe in an Australia where everyone is treated with dignity, regardless of faith or background. This complaint is about drawing a clear line against hate and asserting our right to belong.”
The complaint seeks the following outcomes:
- A formal public apology from AJA, AJAT, and their committee members;
- Immediate removal of the offending material from all platforms;
- An enforceable undertaking to cease further vilifying conduct; and
- Compensation for the harm and distress caused.
Moustafa Kheir, Principal Lawyer at Birchgrove Legal, stated:
“The Australian Jewish Association’s publications consistently portray Palestinians and Muslims in deeply dehumanising terms—describing them as pollutants, threats, or burdens to Australian society. These communications go beyond political discourse; they suggest that Palestinians and Muslims inherently lack compassion, that they are dangerous, criminal, or even evil by nature.”
“Some posts explicitly ridicule suffering, minimise atrocities committed against these communities, or frame them as undeserving of empathy. Others promote the harmful notion that Palestinians and Muslims as a whole are responsible for the actions of individuals and suggest that they should be excluded or removed from this country altogether.”
“This kind of vilification is not only dangerous—it is among the most extreme we have seen in public discourse. What makes it even more concerning is that their affiliated charity, AJAT, continues to benefit from government-endorsed tax concessions without any sign of review. That should alarm every Australian who believes in a fair and inclusive society.”
ENDS
MEDIA CONTACT:
contact@birchgrovelegal.com.au
(02) 9018 1067
