Racial Vilification: Wertheim v Haddad
On 1 July 2025, the Federal Court of Australia handed down its decision in the matter of Wertheim v Haddad. The matter involved the alleged contravention of section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 by an Islamic preacher who had made speeches commenting on Jewish people, Zionism and the conflict in Israel and Gaza, as well as content in scripture. This page outlines the legal questions involved in the case and the court’s findings.
Section 18C
Under section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975, it is unlawful for a person to do an act in public that:
- is reasonably likely, in all the circumstances, to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate another person or a group of people; and
- the act is done because of the race, colour or national or ethnic origin of the other person or of some or all of the people in the group.
The facts in Wertheim v Haddad
William Haddad is a part-time Muslim preacher at the Al Medina Dawah Centre in Bankstown. In October 2023, Haddad decided to deliver a series of speeches about ‘The Jews of Medina’ in response to being asked questions about current events in Israel and Gaza.
The lectures drew links between Jews in ancient times and those in the present day, including assertions such as that the Jews of Medina ‘were holding a position of wealth in the society, and they would use this wealth in order to have authority over the weak, just like they do today”, after which Haddad listed modern business purportedly controlled by Jews. He continued to say other disparaging things about Jews.
The lectures were delivered on three Fridays during November 2023 after a worship service. They were also posted on online platforms, including YouTube, Rumble and SoundCloud.
The application to the court
Two members of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry sued Haddad for racial vilification under section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975.
The applicants argued that his speeches contained a large number of racist imputations about Jewish people that could reasonably be expected to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate Jewish people.
The court’s decision
The court found that Haddad had published statements containing 25 racist imputations directed towards the Jewish people. The statements were published online, where they were likely to come to the attention of the general community, including the Jewish community.
Many members of the Jewish community live with an awareness of their community’s vulnerability to vilification, discrimination, persecution and mass murder, with a majority of Australian Jews having at least one grandparent who is a Holocaust survivor.
The court heard evidence from Jewish witnesses to the effect that their sense of safety in Australia has decreased after the events of 7 October 2023. There has also been a documented increase in antisemitic attacks in this period.
Haddad’s lectures revived old tropes, conspiracy theories and stereotypes about Jews, including that Jews are shifty, conspiratorial, treacherous, cowardly and mischievous, which was likely to have a detrimental impact on the Jewish community due to its historical experience, and were ‘devastatingly offensive and insulting’.
As such Haddad breached section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975. The Al Medina Dawah Centre also contravened the provision by publishing Haddad’s lectures online.
The court ordered the respondents to remove the lectures from the internet, to take reasonable steps to ensure that others who have reported the content remove the content, and not to communicate words sounds or images that convey the racist imputations about the Jewish people outlined in the decision.
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