- Target:
- Senator Lee Rhiannon, Australian Greens NSW
- Region:
- Australia
- Website:
- ausdoofsociety.wix.com
(To keep the petition short and concise we have posted our fully referenced, extended Preamble on our website )
To the Honourable President and members of the Senate in Parliament assembled:
We are a group of Australian Residents, Mums, Dads, Grandparents, Family Members, Organisers, Promoters, Business Owners, Musicians, Artists and Young People who are opposed to the alienation and marginalisation of youth in Australia, in the form of Government 'crackdowns' on music events.
The petition of the undersigned shows:
The current attack on Electronic Dance Music events (specifically) has caused community wide witch-hunts to shut down anything and everything that youth find even remotely entertaining or interesting - thus driving them further towards unfulfilling and deeply depressing lives where drugs and/or alcohol fill the void.
Fuelling community vexation, NSW Premier Mike Baird, NSW Police Minister Troy Grant and numerous Police Commanders and Commissioners have all repeatedly impressed on the public that the 'nature of the entertainment [EDM] is intrinsically linked to illicit drug use', commonly labelling EDM events as 'a breeding ground for wild behaviour, sexual assaults, violence and underage drinking' among other derogatory and Ad Hominem attacks.
As any loving family member well knows, consistent negative dialogue can only serve to CAUSE anger, resentment and mental health issues in young adults, as does reducing quality of life and choices of entertainment.
Additionally, Australians are being prevented from privacy and undisturbed use of their own homes and many tax-payers (promoters, organisers and venues) are loosing business and/or going bankrupt due to forced closures for no other reason than hosting dance parties for youth.
Hence, we beg the Honourable President and members of the Senate to recall, throughout history it has been proved time and again that assaults on entertainment and music are ineffective in addressing drug-culture. And to please also consider those who are being adversely affected, some to devastating degrees, by the current assault.
We, the petitioners, ask that the Senate implement the Australian Green's Drug Reform recommendations. We further ask the Senate to refrain from implementing policies which:
- Undermine the development of youth culture and electronic music in Australia
- Undermine income opportunities associated with EDM events
- Fuel conflicts between supporters of youth culture and the wider community
- Drive up the prices of entertainment for the lowest income groups
- Threaten public health by exerting fear and intimidation practises
- Penalise those who are not in possession of or selling illicit substances
- Reduce the quality of home/contents public liability cover
- Undermine human rights and freedom of choice
- Promote stigma and discrimination of EDM culture
Additionally we also ask the Senate to ensure future policies:
- Promote positive dialogue with the youth of Australia
- Support education and training in art and music associated with EDM events
- Promote equal share of the responsibility/burdens of systematic binge-culture in Australia
- Allow law enforcement to actively liaise and collaborate with residents, families, youth, organisers, promoters and venues of EDM gatherings
- Return police powers to exercise discretion and duty of care
- Focus on harm reduction strategies offered by the people who are most experienced at dealing with drug-use at their events
- Include drug and alcohol education programs at all entertainment venues Australia wide
You can further help this campaign by sponsoring it
The Stop Government Assaults on Music petition to Senator Lee Rhiannon, Australian Greens NSW was written by Australian Doof Society and is in the category Youth at GoPetition.