After being warmed up by Northside comedian Urvi Majumdar, the campaign was launched with a stirring speech from Senator Steph Hodgins-May. Spanning topics like gambling reform, the war, and the “bin fire” that is global politics, she stressed the role that minority voices can play in parliaments. “Greens in parliament make a difference,” she said, citing a range of Canberra policy shifts made possible by the crossbenchers in the Senate.
“This is why Prahran is so important,” she said, emphasising that more Greens MPs in Spring Street could prompt initiatives like more free PT. “But because Prahran overlaps with the Federal seat of Melbourne, this campaign is part of our efforts to win back Melbourne [at the national level],” she said to rousing cheers. She emphasised the high chance of winning back Prahran: “The unpopular Premier, the Liberals in disarray, we have great community support.” Interestingly, it wasn’t until after the 10-minute mark that she mentioned the environment.
Upper House Sarah speaks
State Parliament was represented at the launch by Upper House Western Victorian MP Sarah Mansfield. She opened with comments about her pride in being in Parliament to support the treaty. She also talked extensively about the bin fire and war anxiety. Formerly a GP in Geelong, she talked about the impact of inequality and the grim news about politics and the climate. “More people are looking to the future and seeing a negative trajectory,” she warned. But she said, “we could change that trajectory with different priorities.” Housing, healthcare, and climate change were amongst the topics she held out hope for. “The Greens are an alternative to doomscrolling,” she said.
Hope in Prahran
Angelica Di Camillo’s presentation was more humble than the seasoned politicians before her. She told a more personal story of a journey into being a political candidate. Noting that her mum was in the audience, she said her environmental passion started in the family garden, ‘loving plants with mum’. She learned about the First Nations people and their care of the land. Later, she was inspired by the Leonardo DiCaprio documentary about climate change, ‘Before The Flood’.
“I had no political knowledge or ambition, I just knew Greens equalled Environment,” she said in wide-eyed honesty. She volunteered to hand out how-to-vote cards at a polling booth – and the rest is history. After working in local government and other jobs for a while, she moved into East St Kilda with her partner and loved the community. “And then the Prahran by-election hit. We won the ground campaign, we had the energy but we lost on preferences,” she mused. “But we can win it back.”
With generous live fundraising from a crowd delivering serious support, the Senator said the dollars would go to the first big step towards the win – opening a campaign office.
TWISK looks forward to reporting on other campaign launches.
All images by Julian Meehan. Julianmeehan.com
