Stewart Perrie
The Victorian Premier has showed his solidarity with the trans community following horrific protests in Melbourne last weekend.
On Saturday (March 18), anti-trans demonstrators came together to speak out against transgender individuals at the Let Women Speak event.
They were joined by a bunch of neo-Nazis who repeatedly performed the Sieg Heil salute in support of Adolf Hitler.
The vile motion sparked violent clashes as police attempted to keep counter-protesters at bay, which allowed the neo-Nazis to pass through freely while continuing to salute.
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It was a hurtful and devastating day for the trans community.
However, Daniel Andrews is making sure they feel seen and respected and has made a big move to show his support.
He raised the trans flag above State Parliament this week alongside the pride rainbow flag and progress flag.
Andrew wrote on Twitter: "There's a new flag flying outside the offices of the Victorian Government. Because we'll always respect you. And we'll always have your back."
The move sparked loads of praise online.
One person wrote: "Fantastic gesture. Very poignant and meaningful. Thank you for doing this."
Another said: "Thank you, Premier. Your strong, unambiguous public support of transwomen saves lives. Whatever insults people may throw at you, please know it: You. Have. Saved. Lives."
A third added: "Wonderful - thank you for standing against hate!"
Victoria is moving swiftly in the wake of the dramatic protests and is working on legislation to ban Nazi salutes in public.
Daniel Andrews said: "There are some other jurisdictions, some European countries who have successfully been able to do this.
"We'll look to all of them and make sure that we do this in the most practical and meaningful way, and try and do it in a way that it can't be challenged in the courts."
The state's Attorney General, Jaclyn Symes, admitted it will take some time to get the exact wording into Victoria's legislation, so don't hold your breath on it coming soon.
She told ABC Radio: “The behaviour we saw on the weekend was disgusting, cowardly – a sense of sadness, outrage and disbelief all at once.
"It’s clear this symbol is being used to incite hatred against a variety of people, a variety of minority groups … it’s being used as a recruitment tool.”
Victoria's opposition leader, John Pesutto, said his party will be pledging their bipartisan support for the move.