Speaking of Social Justice

Speaking of Social Justice

by Justice and Peace Office (JPO)

Politics Philosophy

Season 5

Who Even Are We on 'Australia Day'?

In the first episode of 2026, Dr Julie Macken returns with a heavy heart and a frank assessment of the year we’ve stepped into. From the December attack at Bondi to the political theatre that followed, Julie speaks to a nation struggling with grief, division, and identity. With Australia Day around the corner, she asks uncomfortable but necessary questions: What does it mean to be Australian? Who are we when confronted by violence? What values do we actually share, and who gets to decide? Amid bans on language, rising political opportunism, and a world seemingly spiralling into absurdity, this episode calls for clarity, decency, and at the very least, kindness. This isn’t a conversation about social justice so much as a lament for its erosion and an invitation to rebuild it.

Season 4

Human Rights Day feels different this year

In our final episode of 2025, Dr Julie Macken reflects on a year marked by secrecy in government, stalled human rights reform in Australia, and the devastating normalisation of genocide, war, and systemic abuse across the globe. Julie unpacks: Why Australia still has no Human Rights Act How secrecy and disappearing communications undercut democracy How the genocide in Gaza is reshaping global norms What happens when abuse becomes “normal” — and how communities can push back Why our expectations of dignity, respect, and justice must be reclaimed This is a sobering conversation but, also a reminder that we choose what becomes normalised. And choosing human rights is still possible. Take a breath, take a break, and take this with you into the new year.

Outlaw Gangs, Lost Billions, and Our Moral Compass

Next year marks 25 years since the Tampa crisis, a week that changed Australia forever. In this episode, Dr Julie Macken reflects on how one political decision reshaped the nation’s moral compass, turning compassion for those seeking refuge into cruelty and complacency. From the shocking revelation that an outlaw motorcycle gang is being paid billions to run our offshore detention centres, to the government’s ongoing refusal to hold an inquiry into immigration detention, Julie exposes the deep moral and political failures we continue to fund...in silence. This isn’t just a history lesson; it’s a mirror. If silence is consent, what story are we agreeing to?

Protecting People, Not Power

In this week’s episode of Speaking of Social Justice, Julie Macken challenges Australia’s narrow view of national security. While policymakers pour billions into defence and submarines, real security, climate resilience, housing, health, equality, and community wellbeing, remains dangerously neglected. Julie asks the questions few in power dare to: What would national security look like if it actually kept Australians safe from the threats we know are coming—climate catastrophe, pandemics, cyber warfare, and social inequality? Why are we investing in weapons instead of in people, ecosystems, and the planet that sustains us? It’s time to redefine security, not as militarisation, but as protection for our communities, our environment, and our shared future.

The Climate Reports They Won’t Release

In this episode of Speaking of Social Justice, Dr Julie Macken explores the alarming findings of the federal government’s climate impact report and the hidden intelligence reports they chose not to release. While Australians were told about rising temperatures, collapsing fish stocks, and dire environmental futures, the government kept quiet about the geopolitical fallout across our region. Macken unpacks what this silence means: displacement of entire nations like Tuvalu and Kiribati, food and water crises in Indonesia, and the prospect of hundreds of millions facing unliveable conditions near our doorstep. Her call is urgent: Australia needs a real national security plan and not just for defence, but for climate collapse, biodiversity loss, displacement, cyber warfare, and inequality. Without it, the choices ahead could be catastrophic. This isn’t about fear. It’s about preparation, compassion, and the kind of country we want to be when the crisis hits.

A Bad State of Affairs

In this week's episode of Speaking of Social Justice, Dr Julie Macken delves into the seismic development in Australia's national security landscape from ASIO, confirming that Iran, through its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, orchestrated anti-semetic attacks on Australian soil. In response, Albanese has expelled Iran's ambassador, suspended operations at the Tehran embassy, and initiated steps to list the IRGC as a terrorist organisation. Macken goes further and argues that Chris Minns knew and it is time for an apology. It is time to apologise to the pro-palestine groups that were blamed in the process. It is time for a repeal of the hateful legislation that followed and the fabrication of events thereafter. This is how democracy stops being democracy. One step, one removal of our freedom.

Sydney's First Picnic for Peace

In this episode, Dr Julie Macken shares the story behind Sydney’s first Peace Picnic, happening on 31 August at Wentworth Common, Sydney Olympic Park. She talks about why, in a world full of conflict, from Gaza and Ukraine to rising domestic violence and community divisions at home, people are looking for a simple, peaceful way to come together. Julie explains how a humble picnic can be a powerful response to despair, offering connection, music, meaningful conversations, and a sense of solidarity when so many of us feel powerless. This isn’t about politics or religion. It’s about ordinary people showing up for peace in our homes, communities, and world. Learn how you can be part of this small but powerful act of hope here: picnicforpeace.org

Moral Injury

In this week's episode, Dr Julie Macken confronts the emotional and spiritual toll of witnessing injustice; from the horrors unfolding in Gaza to the growing despair in Australian communities. She explores the concept of moral injury, the deep internal wound that arises when we witness atrocities we cannot stop, and its ripple effects on our collective wellbeing. Julie also offers a hopeful path forward: community-based political action as a remedy for despair and a source of healing and reconnection. This episode is a call to feel, to reflect, and most importantly, to act. Find Julie's book here.

Death Cap Mushrooms and Genocide

This week on Speaking of Social Justice, Dr Julie Macken dives deep into three major news stories; one dominating headlines, the others barely noticed. While the world devours every detail of the Victorian “death cap mushroom murder,” two seismic reports about Australia’s treatment of First Nations people, historic genocide in Victoria and systemic racism in the NT police, barely register. Why?Julie unpacks how the media shapes what we care about, but also how our clicks reinforce the stories we see. Is it discomfort, denial, or something deeper? It’s a sharp, sobering reflection on what stories we prioritise and what that says about us as a nation.

The Joy of Missing Out

In this week's episode of Speaking of Social Justice, we bring to you a special post-pentecost reflection where Dr Michael Walker challenges the myths of modern freedom and fulfilment. Speaking from the historic St Peter’s Church in Surry Hills, where Mary MacKillop and Eileen O’Connor once prayed, Michael explores how social media-fuelled consumerism has seduced us into lifestyles of overwork, isolation, and ecological harm. Marking 10 years since the promulgation of Laudato Si’, this episode unpacks what it means to live well without living large. Drawing from Catholic tradition, Scripture, and his own lived experience of giving up his car, Michael makes a passionate and practical case for “the grace of enough”; where deeper relationships, radical simplicity, and spiritual clarity offer a more life-giving path than lifestyle creep ever could. From Viktor Frankl to Francis de Sales, copper mines to Instagram influencers, this episode is a tour de force on faith, consumption, and what it really means to follow Christ in a world addicted to more.

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