Standing up for workers’ rights and fighting back against racism have been at the core of Daniel’s activism over the past twenty years. “I got politically active when John Howard was in power”, he says. “I took to the streets with hundreds of thousands of workers from different industries and workplaces to defend our rights at work. I raised my voice alongside many others against the incarceration of refugees in desert hell-holes like Woomera.”
“We all learnt an important lesson back then”, recalls Daniel. “When the Labor Party replaced the Howard government many of us thought things would change. But they didn’t. Rights at work were only partially restored. Privatisation of services continued as before. And refugees continued to be tortured, with offshore camps on Pacific Islands reopened. Our sitting member for Maribyrong, Bill Shorten, played a big part in trampling over justice. We even had to fight for marriage equality because the Labor Party refused to budge on this basic question.”
Fighting back against racism is also personal for Daniel: “I’ve lived in Melbourne my whole life and have experienced and witnessed racist policing and harassment. It’s part of what’s driven me to help organise protest movements that give people a voice.”
For the past eight years, Daniel has lived in the inner west and been a part of protest movements in the local area. When a high-profile international figure from the far-right organised to speak at an event directly across the road from the Flemington public housing towers, he was involved in organising a counter-protest. “I joined with other locals, including many public housing residents, to say these far-right figures and their racist rhetoric aren’t welcome in our community”, he says.
“More recently”, Daniel says, “I was absolutely outraged and moved to action when VicPol put the same housing estate under a police siege with zero warning. Lockdowns have been a crucial public health measure and have saved lives. But I opposed the contemptuous treatment of public housing residents, the poorly managed lockdown of the towers and the decades of government underfunding of public housing that have left the towers in disrepair despite the efforts of local residents.”
Daniel’s social work has focused on improving the lives of refugees. “I’ve been fortunate enough”, he says, “to work with refugee families who enrich this city despite facing a lack of funding for resettlement and support services.”
“If elected I will use my platform to push for equality and fairness. I’ll speak out against racist police practices and government policies that discriminate against asylum seekers, international students and migrants. I will fight for adequate income support so that working class people are not pushed into grinding poverty if they find themselves out of work. I will campaign against the continued gentrification of this area, overpriced housing developments and for greatly increased funding for public housing and other public services that will improve our lives.”