The relevance of the Radical Jewish Tradition today — and it is an urgent one — is not that it offers a guide to campaigning against antisemitism (though revealing this history is its great achievement); rather, it is that it reminds us on the value of working-class struggle.

The argument that is made with the most passion is the one that says that the rights of minorities should not be the subject of a popular vote. This seems reasonable, but it rather misunderstands the nature of rights in a society like Australia. Here, rights are not to be found in the Constitution. They are not inherent in the human being; nor are they bestowed by the gods. Rather, rights are accumulated over time. At particular moment in history some section of the population will decide that, for example, women should have the right to vote, or own property.