Along with many thousands of other Melburnians, I met outside the Flinders Street station clocks yesterday afternoon to protest against the visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Australia. The protest was organised by Free Palestine Victoria.

Being my first protest since the climate actions in early 2020, I was a bit nervous given the violence at the Sydney protests just a few days prior (Crikey article here, ABC news article here). What made me feel a bit more comfortable was that it was a registered, peaceful protest that Victoria Police had approved.

The Sydney protests on the Monday night were the final trigger for me to join in the march, but other factors had helped out as well. My interest in the actions (and inaction) of Australian politicians had gotten me increasingly angry, and I'd also been frustrated by my own passiveness in not doing enough to stand up for the values I care about.