Social cohesion has lost its feelgood vibe. What will it take to offer a fair go for all?

## Summary
That seems almost out of reach in a chaotic world One term has already become the well-intentioned weasel word of 2026: “social cohesion”. It describes an ongoing process, “A cohesive society works towards the wellbeing of all its members, fights exclusion and marginalisation, creates a sense of belonging, promotes trust and offers its members the opportunity of upward mobility.” In Australia today, too many pathways seem designed to cap social mobility. Politicians love to boast that Australia is the “greatest multicultural nation on Earth” but hide behind the flag and disappear into a vapour of cliches when asked about nation building and what being Australian might actually mean in the 21st century. View image in fullscreen ‘Last year, Labor MP Dr Anne Aly issued a call to all Australians to reimagine multiculturalism and the real social cohesion that would befit the title of the most successful multicultural nation in the world.’ Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP After Angus Taylor was elected Liberal leader he kept talking about “the Australian way of life”.

## Article Content
As churches, unions, political parties, service clubs and community organisations continue to shrink, too many pathways seem designed to cap social mobility.
Illustration: Victoria Hart/Guardian Design
View image in fullscreen
As churches, unions, political parties, service clubs and community organisations continue to shrink, too many pathways seem designed to cap social mobility.
Illustration: Victoria Hart/Guardian Design
Social cohesion has lost its feelgood vibe. What will it take to offer a fair go for all?
The phrase should evoke optimism, positive expectations about the future, trust and belonging. That seems almost out of reach in a chaotic world
One term has already become the well-intentioned weasel word of 2026: “social cohesion”. A phrase that can be dropped into speeches, inquiries and legislation, its meaning shape-shifts depending on the audience. Is it about “glue” or the rule of law? About community resilience or countering fear? Does it mean finding places of real exchange, or shutting up and getting on?
Although it has been in the political lexicon for years,
the terror attack
that targeted Jewish people celebrating Hanukah in Bondi last December brought social cohesion to the fore as an urgent problem to solve.
Social cohesion should evoke optimism, positive expectations about the future, trust and belonging. That seems almost out of reach in a chaotic world that amplifies feeling, makes thinking hard and is overflowing with institutions (and leaders) who encourage hate.
As a result of the Bondi tragedy, antisemitism has become the bellwether of diminishing cohesion.
For many people in Australia, social cohesion has lost its feelgood vibe.
Now, the term provokes cynicism, confusion – even anger. Some hear social consensus or social conformity. No dissent allowed. It doesn’t yet come with an embedded action plan grounded in the distinctively Australian commitment to a fair go.
View image in fullscreen
‘The terror attack that targeted Jewish people celebrating Hanukah in Bondi last December brought social cohesion to the fore as an urgent problem to solve.’
Photograph: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images
Psychoanalyst Allan Shafer diagnoses the loss of optimism as deriving from widespread social depression: a collective state of despair, anxiety and polarisation driven by global violence, political manipulation, trauma and the collapse of nuanced dialogue. This he argues, and we all see, produces hate and undermines the capacity to recognise our shared humanity.
Transforming this demands hard, unglamorous work, and emotionally intelligent leaders who can deflect and reframe,
not lash out
. It takes time, robust institutions, respectful dialogue and being prepared to correct the missteps of the past that have created institutions that foster inequality.
Instead, over the past two decades no government has dismantled the social and ethical architecture that John Howard set in place. Recognition of First Peoples has stalled. Education has
become more segregated
. Universities more expensive. Visas more complicated and costly. Family reunion harder. Childcare, disability and aged care services have become “investable industries” propped up by public money. There is still no national anti-racism strategy. Welfare payments leave many in poverty. Public housing is still not being built at scale. Despite several inquiries and overwhelming public support we still have
no national human rights act
that would level the playing field for everyone.
Palpable fear
In the
royal commission into social cohesion and antisemitism
, social cohesion is framed as a “national consensus in support of democracy, freedom and the rule of law”. These are essential parts of the nation’s ethical infrastructure
,
not tools for belonging. If the royal commission’s deliberations confine social cohesion to opposition to antisemitism, crucial though that is, it will miss the bigger even more complex problem.
Now fear is palpable. Isolation normalised. Schools, synagogues and mosques protected by armed guards. Police are deployed to corral demonstrations. Words banned and some subjects pushed off limits. Meanwhile, social media fosters and provokes suspicion and hate. Almost everyone navigates a real and virtual world full of
“freedom restricting harassment”
.
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Read more
Life is still better for most than in many other countries, but this a long way from the relaxed and comfortable Australia where social cohesion seemed to dawn for most almost as naturally as a clear day after a summer storm.
Three decades ago,
John Howard
declared Australians were over the endless seminar on national identity
as one inquiry after another revealed a more complex and conflicted history and contemporary reality. Instead, a cliched ideal of fairness was plonked on the mantelpiece like a trophy from a past triumph. Nation building is about imagin

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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
- It takes time, robust institutions, respectful dialogue and being prepared to correct the missteps of the past that have created institutions that foster inequality.
- View image in fullscreen ‘The racist abuse that flooded the internet during the voice referendum set the scene for the fractured, febrile environment we now reluctantly take for granted.’ Photograph: Sydney Low/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock In 2007, the Scanlon Foundation found that a comfortable majority had a strong sense of being Australian and took great pride in the way of life and culture.
- Now less than half feel that pride of attachment, and only a third of young people, recent immigrants and those struggling financially, have a strong sense of belonging.
- There are few textbooks for building a truly robust and inclusive multi-ethnic society with an easy intercultural, cosmopolitan spirit.

### Areas for Consideration
- Although it has been in the political lexicon for years, the terror attack that targeted Jewish people celebrating Hanukah in Bondi last December brought social cohesion to the fore as an urgent problem to solve.
- View image in fullscreen ‘The terror attack that targeted Jewish people celebrating Hanukah in Bondi last December brought social cohesion to the fore as an urgent problem to solve.’ Photograph: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images Psychoanalyst Allan Shafer diagnoses the loss of optimism as deriving from widespread social depression: a collective state of despair, anxiety and polarisation driven by global violence, political manipulation, trauma and the collapse of nuanced dialogue.
- If the royal commission’s deliberations confine social cohesion to opposition to antisemitism, crucial though that is, it will miss the bigger even more complex problem.

### Implications
- What will it take to offer a fair go for all?
- The phrase should evoke optimism, positive expectations about the future, trust and belonging.
- Social cohesion should evoke optimism, positive expectations about the future, trust and belonging.
- As a result of the Bondi tragedy, antisemitism has become the bellwether of diminishing cohesion.

### Expert Commentary
This article covers social, cohesion, australia topics. Notable strengths include discussion of social. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 2347.