The Victorian Branch of the Community and Public Sector Union condemns in the strongest possible terms the violent and disgraceful attacks on the Hanukkah event at Bondi Beach.

This was an antisemitic act. It was hateful, it was dangerous, and it has no place in our society.

Our hearts go out to Sydney’s Jewish community who are grieving and shaken by this attack, and to the communities across the country affected by this tragedy.

The CPSU opposes all forms of antisemitism, racism, and religious persecution. We stand for the right of people to pray in peace, to gather safely, and to express their religious and cultural beliefs without fear of intimidation or violence.

We also defend the right of people to not be religious at all. Freedom of belief includes freedom from belief. These freedoms are fundamental, and they belong to all of us.

Acts like this are about division. They are designed to pit us against each other along lines of race and religion. When we are divided, we are weaker. Our strength has always been our unity.

Now is the time to stand together. And yes, it is also a time to fight back against the forces that are trying to divide us.

In the days ahead, many things will be said. Some of these words will attempt to deepen fear and fracture our communities. We must not let them. There is no threat to you because your colleague celebrates Christmas, Eid or Hanukkah, or because they do not celebrate anything at all. What people believe, or how they mark it, is none of your business.

We also send our solidarity to our NSW public service colleagues responding to this event and supporting the community in the weeks and months to come. May the unity of the workers’ movement see us through.