What can happen when things don't - The Easternat riot 19.3.2010

Recently in the outer South-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, conveniently enough – or inconveniently, depending on how you look at it – saw a ‘small’ gathering of say 2000 protesters and rev-heads gathered together in objection.

They objected legendary racing driver turned tyre king, Bob Jane’s decision to cancel the Calder Park Raceway Easternats – an Easter holiday time drag racing fest.

Where they decided to congregate, for reasons unbeknownst to me, was – here we go – conveniently, or inconveniently enough more-or-less immediately adjacent to one of my places of employment.


I say convenient, because it resulted in me working overtime, hence being paid more, but inconveniently, because – and this is where I got thinking – the masses of initially peaceful demonstrators blocked my route home, beat my car and made several attempts to enter my car. While I was in it! Thank god I had the doors locked.

Aside from the obvious ensuing events that clearly identify most of the human race – at least the ones involved with this demonstration – as total morons, I couldn’t help but wonder ‘this is what we do when we want something done, or in this case, not done (the cancellation of the Easternats at Calder Park)’.

Sad, sad, sad.

I was, as an innocent bystander turned amateur on-the-spot interviewer, initially in support of the initially peaceful protesters. That was until they lit flares, illegal fireworks, threw street signs through shop windows and flipped over a Ute. Yes, while the immediate display of ‘wowness’ that is conjured up in the face of such events is impressive and the sheer people-power that fills the atmosphere is sure to have some sort of sway in their favour, once the vandalism began, I experienced a paradigmatic shift. As I’m sure the Police officers did as they began the crux of their work.

I fully comprehend how a mass demonstration of this scale that causes a bit of a stir by mixing-up traffic flows and bringing out the police helicopters can aid a cause, but I do not comprehend how the seedy underbelly of such demonstrations is meant to achieve their perceived form of justice.

I even went so far on the night to say to a passer-by in a brief conversation something along the lines of ‘blah, blah, blah, these people are going about it the wrong way.’ Well, let me make a recommendation, never say to a hotted-up drag fan that their mass demonstration with intentions of becoming violent is a bad idea. I was met with a fiery look, a stern tone and a far from friendly ‘get f*&%ed, mate!’

I proceeded to bite my tongue.

Good on them for having the people-power to muster everyone together to achieve the one goal.

Shame on them for causing so much distraction, destruction and vandalism.

Shame on them for smashing on my car because I tried to force my way through their hundreds-strong wall that blocked my way home. In retrospect a dumb idea, but I can be defiant and try to get my way, too!