Last week news that Waverley council was considering a proposal to rope off a section of Bondibeach for an exclusive “Euro beach chic” club got under a lot of peoples’ skin. More than 5,000people have signed a petition urging the council to turn down the proposal, calling the idea “un-Australian”. “Public access to the beach is a democratic and egalitarian principle that should neverbe compromised,” declared the Inner West council mayor, Darcy Byrne

1. Even without private clubs, the 'egalitarian' Australian
beach is a national myth
Alex McKinnon
From the Cronulla riots to exclusive real estate, beaches have often been inaccessible to many in Australia
Mon 12 Oct 2020 06.13 BST
L
ast week news that Waverley council was considering a proposal to rope off a section of Bondi
beach for an exclusive “Euro beach chic” club got under a lot of peoples’ skin. More than 5,000
people have signed a petition urging the council to turn down the proposal, calling the idea “un-
Australian”. “Public access to the beach is a democratic and egalitarian principle that should never
be compromised,” declared the Inner West council mayor, Darcy Byrne.
It’s easy (and quite fun) to imagine how the Amalfi Beach Club’s investment bankers and Instagram
influencers would fare at the hands of the beach-going masses. But the idea of the beach as the great
equaliser is one of Australia’s most beloved national myths. Free and open to all, the beach is the
embodiment of our rugged egalitarianism; proof that, unlike snobby England and status-obsessed America,
Australia is a place where everyone’s on a more-or-less equal footing.

2. Like most of our national myths, though, the idea that the beach is for everyone is full of holes when you
look at it closely. While it’s true swathes of Australian beaches aren’t segregated or privatised like their
European counterparts, access to the beach in Australia – particularly in major cities – has often been
affected in more subtle ways by income, race and postcode. From small coastal towns to the sands of Bondi,
Australian history is littered with examples of “locals” defending “their” beaches from outsiders, showing
that we’re a lot less equal than we like to think.
Covid shone a light on this nasty locals-only mindset in a big way. Back in April the Waverley mayor, Paula
Masselos, was forced to walk back a plan to restrict access to Bondi, Bronte and Tamarama to local council
residents. Signs taped up around Queensland’s Palm Beach in April read: “If you don’t live here, don’t surf
here! Local 4221 residents or within a 5K radius ONLY until Covid-19 restrictions are lifted.”
Exclusionary beach culture goes back a long time. In the 1990s Bondi locals successfully opposed the
planned Bondi beach rail link, a no-brainer infrastructure project to make one of the most famous beaches
in the world accessible by train. Save Bondi Beach Incorporated, the community group that torpedoed the
BBRI, argued that a train to Bondi would bring crime, social unrest and homelessness.
Making the beach difficult to get to via public transport is a time-honoured tactic to keep the western
Sydney undesirables away. Any attempt to improve public transport access to the northern beaches (not
called the “insular peninsula” for nothing) is met with ferocious opposition from locals. Even the state
government’s relatively modest attempt to boost bus services via the B Line a few years ago was resisted by
the likes of the former Mackellar MP Bronwyn Bishop, who said the quiet part loud when she argued the
beaches’ lifestyle would be “threatened” by more people “coming into the electorate”.
As roped-off as the eastern suburbs and the northern beaches are to non-residents, the gold standard of
beach policing remains Cronulla. The text messages that drew 5,000 white racists to “support Leb and Wog
bashing day” at Cronulla beach in 2005 told recipients: “Bring your mates and let’s show them this is our
beach and they are never welcome.”
Even before the riots, Cronulla beach could be a hostile landscape for anyone who wasn’t blond, tanned and
white. In the aftermath, racists claimed beaches around the country as the battlegrounds for their vision of
a return to white Australia.
At the height of the “African gangs” hysteria in the lead-up to 2018’s Victorian state election, far-right
extremists targeted people of African heritage at St Kilda beach. The beach has since become a focal point of
far-right activity.
None of this is news to people outside the beach bubble. “This ain’t Home and Away. I didn’t grow up round
all those beaches, but I still got bros at the Bay,” boast the Pasifika rappers OneFour, who come from the
western Sydney suburb of Mount Druitt. A lot of effort has gone into keeping people like them far from the
beaches – unless a stretch in Long Bay prison counts.
Waverley council have already indicated its opposition to the Amalfi Beach Club proposal and it’s highly
unlikely to go ahead. “Our beaches and parks are public open spaces, for the enjoyment of everyone,”
council spokespeople have declared.
But let’s not kid ourselves. For millions of people, the beach is effectively roped off already.
News is under threat …
… just when we need it the most. Millions of readers around the world are flocking to the Guardian
in search of honest, authoritative, fact-based reporting that can help them understand the biggest
challenge we have faced in our lifetime. But at this crucial moment, news organisations are facing a

3. cruel financial double blow: with fewer people able to leave their homes, and fewer news vendors in
operation, we’re seeing a reduction in newspaper sales across the UK. Advertising revenue continues
to fall steeply meanwhile as businesses feel the pinch. We need you to help fill the gap.
We believe every one of us deserves equal access to vital public service journalism. So, unlike many
others, we made a different choice: to keep Guardian journalism open for all, regardless of where
they live or what they can afford to pay. This would not be possible without financial contributions
from those who can afford to pay, who now support our work from 180 countries around the world.
Reader financial support has meant we can keep investigating, disentangling and interrogating. It
has protected our independence, which has never been so critical. We are so grateful.
We need your support so we can keep delivering quality journalism that’s open and independent.
And that is here for the long term. Every reader contribution, however big or small, is so valuable.
Support The Guardian from as little as £1 – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.
Support The Guardian
Topics
Bondi beach
Opinion
Sydney
Melbourne
Race
comment