Community legal centres welcome the passage of the Justice Legislation Amendment (Anti-vilification and Social Cohesion) Bill through the Victorian Parliament upper house with amendments to strengthen how it will work in practice.
Community legal centres welcome the passage of the Justice Legislation Amendment (Anti-vilification and Social Cohesion) Bill through the Victorian Parliament upper house with amendments to strengthen how it will work in practice.
The Bill will be returned to the Legislative Assembly, where it is expected to pass this week without further amendment.
The Bill will provide important protections against hate speech for people with disability, women, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander and LGBTIQA+ communities.
These new protections will improve how legal protections can be used by victims of hate speech to enforce their rights, and promote diversity and respect in our society.
Community legal centres have been working in close partnership with impacted communities to advocate for stronger protections from harmful hate speech for almost a decade. We have consistently advocated for laws which provide protections from
hate while safeguarding rights to legitimate public protest.
Amendments supported by the Greens, Labor, Legalise Cannabis and Animal Justice parties in the Legislative Council positively strengthen the Bill by:
- Clarifying that a key purpose of the new laws is to provide protections from vilification for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and other groups experiencing systemic injustice and structural oppression
- Extending Parliament’s statement on prohibiting vilification to all parts of the Bill (not just the civil protections)
- Requiring police and prosecutors to take into account the social, historical and cultural context when making decisions in relation to prosecutions
- Adding a requirement for the Director of Public Prosecutions to consent to prosecution for serious vilification offences
- Clarifying that religious preaching and proselytising must be in conformity with religious doctrines, beliefs or principles for the civil religious exception, and
- Bringing forward when the civil protections will come into effect to 30 June 2026.
Community legal centres welcomed Victoria’s new protections against hate. These laws will provide essential legal protections from hate speech for communities under sustained attack, while ensuring that local communities and grassroots advocates angered by injustice can continue to campaign for fairer laws.
Nerita Waight, CEO at the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service (VALS) said:
“VALS welcomes the passing of these anti-vilification laws which explicitly recognise that their purpose is to protect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, and other communities experiencing systemic injustice and structural oppression from harmful vilification.
“Aboriginal communities are subjected to racial discrimination, systemic and structural exclusion on a daily basis. VALS worked closely with Charmaine Clarke to support her advocacy for stronger protections against hate speech, after she was subjected to harmful vilification as an Aboriginal woman. With the passing of this Bill, I hope that our people are better protected from discrimination and vilification. We must all take a clear stand against hate, and protect and uphold the rights of those most vulnerable, it is about time that the Victorian Labor government has shown leadership on this issue.”
Louisa Gibbs, CEO at the Federation of Community Legal Centres said:
“We welcome the Victorian Parliament passing new laws to protect people and groups already experiencing systemic injustice from harmful hate speech.
“Community legal centres have long advocated for greater protections against hate for people with disability, women, and LGBTIQA+ communities, and support Victoria taking a clear stand against hate. Expressions of hatred harm individuals, our communities, peace and development and we support this very positive legislative reform.”
Sarah Schwartz, Legal Director at the Human Rights Law Centre said:
“Every person should live a life free from violence, discrimination and vilification on the basis of their race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or ethnicity. This is particularly important for people who experience entrenched racism and disadvantage.
Victoria’s anti-vilification laws will now provide stronger protections for everyone and signal that the Victorian community stands against all forms of vilification.
“The guardrails that have been put in place against the prosecution of political speech or the targeting of already over-policed communities are an important protection that should prevent police from misusing these laws.”
Hamish McLachlan, CEO at Fitzroy Legal Service said:
“We applaud the passing of this law to uphold the rights of peoples and communities who for too long have faced hate and vilification for who they are. We also commend the inclusion of important safeguards in the new criminal offences to ensure that these same communities are not unfairly targeted under the very law meant to protect them. The roll out of this law must be carefully monitored to ensure that it achieves its purposes, and that all Victorians can live their lives with respect and dignity.”