Neo-Nazi forum in Melbourne restaurant a ‘threat to social cohesion’
Teal MP Zoe Daniel says a gathering by the National Workers Alliance will ‘exacerbate anxiety’ among Jewish constituents, as the eatery that hosted the function says it will likely be forced to close down.
A Melbourne restaurant which hosted prominent neo-Nazis has come under fire from its local community and is reportedly “scared to reopen”.
Mediterranean eatery Urban Street, located in the southeast Melbourne suburb of McKinnon, held a function for the National Workers Alliance on Saturday which was attended by high profile alt-right figures Blair Cottrell and Thomas Sewell, alongside celebrity Damien Richardson.
Urban Street has deleted waves of comments and reviews from patrons condemning it for hosting the event, where almost 100 patrons were reportedly hidden from the public eye by blacked-out windows.
Richardson, a former cast member on Neighbours, has spoken at NWA events in the past and was alleged to have delivered a speech on Saturday. The NWA describes itself as an organisation for the “preservation of western culture and identity”.
Goldstein MP Zoe Daniel has slammed the “appalling” gathering in her electorate.
“It is particularly distressing to our Jewish community, as well as to the broader Goldstein community, that a McKinnon restaurant hosted a gathering attended by prominent neo-Nazis,” Ms Daniel said in a statement.
“It is appalling that Nazism has any support in Australia and it has absolutely no place in our community.
“I fully understand that this will further exacerbate anxiety among Jewish people in Goldstein.
“It is critical that we maintain social cohesion in Australia. I will continue to work closely with Jewish community leaders, police, the Community Security Group and all levels of government to ensure community safety.”
Speaking to the Herald-Sun, an Urban Street spokesperson said the restaurant was unaware it was hosting a group associated with Nazism, saying it was now “too scared to reopen”.
“We sincerely apologise if we offended anybody it was never our intention, we are not a place that holds any type of events that promote any type of racism,” the spokesperson said.
“Chances are we are going to end up closing our business because of this.”
In a post that has since been removed from its Instagram account, Urban Street said it had dismissed the managerial staff who had approved the event.
Sewell leads the National Socialist Network, a neo-Nazi group that has consolidated a range of white nationalist organisations. In October he was convicted for assault.
Sewell has repeatedly clashed with police, having led a neo-Nazi contingent at the Let Women Speak rally in March 2023 and faced condemnation from NSW Premier Chris Minns when he attempted to lead a rally in Sydney on Australia Day.
Urban Street did not respond to a request for comment.
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