“The Australian flag has been banned by the organisers of a major Sydney rock music festival, who fear it may be used as a symbol of hate.
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The event tours six cities in Australia and New Zealand but the ban will only affect Sydney, where the festival has been shifted to the day before its usual Australia Day date to avoid nationalistic overtones.
Last year in Sydney, festival-goers were intimidated by music fans brandishing flags and demanding people pledge their allegiance.
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Event organiser Ken West said the fans’ behaviour last year in the wake of the Cronulla riots and the recent ethnic violence at the Australian Open tennis tournament had forced his hand.
“The Australian flag was being used as gang colours. It was racism disguised as patriotism and I’m not going to tolerate it.”” Age
What’s happening to Australia? I really don’t get it. Were these people always there and I just didn’t notice, or can things change so much in only a few years?