Why Australian politicians welcomed fascists after the Second World War
Australia resettled fascists, even war criminals after World War II as part of a worldwide program led by the International Refugee Organisation. The background of these immigrants was known to all political parties, but they were regarded as cheap – and white – labour. Historian Jayne Persian explores the impact of these characters on the trajectory of postwar politics — a phenomenon well documented in other parts of the world but with which Australia has barely begun to reckon. Presented by the Brisbane Writers Festival Jayne Persian Associate Professor in History, University of Southern Queensland Author of Fascists in Exile: Post-War Displaced Persons in Australia and Beautiful Balts: From Displaced Persons to New Australians Anthony Cooper Author of best-selling Darwin Spitfires and Dispatch from Berlin, 1943
Big Ideas · Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (mediacore-live-production.akamaized.net) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
Australia resettled fascists, even war criminals after World War II as part of a worldwide program led by the International Refugee Organisation. The background of these immigrants was known to all political parties, but they were regarded as cheap – and white – labour. Historian Jayne Persian explores the impact of these characters on the trajectory of postwar politics — a phenomenon well documented in other parts of the world but with which Australia has barely begun to reckon.
Presented by the Brisbane Writers Festival
Jayne PersianAssociate Professor in History, University of Southern QueenslandAuthor of Fascists in Exile: Post-War Displaced Persons in Australia and Beautiful Balts: From Displaced Persons to New Australians
Anthony CooperAuthor of best-selling Darwin Spitfires and Dispatch from Berlin, 1943