On Sunday at 3pm, Aucklanders will gather in Aotea Square to support the Jewish community and oppose antisemitic hatred.

After some speeches and a vigil, the rally will move down Queen Street.

Organiser Lucy Rogers says the event is a response to the terrorist attack in Sydney yesterday, but it’s also a response to disturbing trends in New Zealand.

“Hanukkah is the celebration of light over darkness, and that’s the kaupapa of our event,” she says. “New Zealand is now a country which posts armed police outside Jewish schools and synagogues to keep them safe. This cannot become the new normal. We must draw a line in the sand.” “This march is an opportunity to show our Jewish whānau they are not alone.”

Rogers is also keen to avoid hatred. “Our kaupapa is peaceful and non-violent. Please do not carry signs which contain profanity or express hatred toward any group, including Muslims. By attending you are also undertaking to comply with lawful police instructions.”

The event is being organised by people from a variety of faiths and political backgrounds, who are concerned about antisemitic rhetoric both online and on our streets. Speakers will include Juliet Moses, President of the New Zealand Jewish Council, and others to be announced soon.

There will be a police presence.

Background

In surveys between the 1980s and the 2000s, most Kiwi Jews said antisemitism was not a serious issue in New Zealand society. The majority said they had not experienced it.

Sadly, by 2019 times had changed. Significantly more Jews said antisemitism was an issue, and the political and cultural climate has not improved since then. A Christchurch man was recently jailed for an unprovoked assault on a Jewish Israeli tourist – punching him so hard in the face that it shattered three front teeth.

In November, Stuff reported on a steep rise in antisemitic offences in New Zealand.

According to figures released under the OIA, “in the two years leading to October 7 2023, there were nine, then 20 anti-Semitic offences. But after the Hamas attack and the Israeli government’s response, the numbers rose to 133 in the year to September 2024, and 97 in the year to September 2025.”

“In the two years before the Hamas attacks, there were no recorded anti-Semitic assaults, but there’ve been 15 in the two years since.”

Notes:

This march is an independent grassroots initiative and is not affiliated with Destiny Church in any way.

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