Acknowledgement of Country//
Headlines:
Activist, community worker and co-founder of the Homeless Persons Union of Victoria Pat ‘Spike’ Chiappalone spoke with us about revelations in this weekend's Age that the City of Melbourne's contracted security force of so-called 'community safety officers' have been encouraged to use force against people sleeping rough in the CBD as part of their training. The HPU has started a petition to stop the CSO program - sign it here. The HPU is also encouraging people to make a submission to the City of Melbourne on its 2026-2027 draft budget, which you can do here. Consultation closes on 28 April 2026.//
We listened back to part of a conversation between Mia from 3CR's Earth Matters show and Te Raukura O’Connell Rapira and Laniyuk, two staunch and inspiring warriors engaged in the defence of Larrakia country. Larrakia Country is Laniyuk’s country, and together with Te Raukura and an ever-expanding network of fellow protectors she has been waging a staunch fight against military housing development on her land. Today, we play the first part of Mia's interview with Laniyuk and Te Raukura, where they talk about Larrakia Country, forest clearing and the military housing development, as well as local community opposition. Listen to the full conversation here, and catch Earth Matters every Sunday from 11-11:30AM on 3CR 855AM.//
We played a brief update from Lelianna of the Community Defence Marshalling System (Instagram) about the ongoing fight for justice by former MediCeram workers, including details of a rolling picket at Ansell's Richmond headquarters. We also shared the full list of campaign demands.//
Nicole Bartholomeusz, Chief Executive at cohealth, joins us to discuss cohealth’s second consecutive platinum honour at 2026 Pride in Health + Wellbeing Awards and the importance of providing integrated health care. Nicole has been the Chief Executive at cohealth since 2019 having served as a vital decision maker in a range of leadership roles in community health since 2006, and states that “Social justice and health equity are the core principles of her decision-making and key drivers of her advocacy priorities.'' We discussed why cohealth is so vital in the victorian health sector and what's next for the organisation.//
Simon Tran, Better Buses Campaign spokesperson, joined us to discuss improving the broken bus network in the West as fuel prices and cost-of-living pressures increase. Simon is a young resident of the West who works as a software engineer but spends his spare time advocating for transport justice in his community. Having lived in the West for two decades, Simon knows the struggle of growing up with transport hardships and hopes future generations can instead have the transport they deserve, unlocking opportunities and freedoms.//
Emily, Inez, Leila, Priya, River, Candy
