Happy recognition of the State of Palestine!
So now that most of us have some of our inalienable rights, let’s get on with the case.
In Part 1, we recounted the devastating events of the Port Arthur Massacre in Tasmania on 28 April 1996, when Martin Bryant murdered 35 people and wounded dozens more. In this follow-up episode, Dee and Isla explore what came next: the grief of survivors, the trial of Bryant, and how this tragedy sparked one of the most sweeping gun reforms anywhere in the world.
We also look at how Prime Minister John Howard’s government moved within 12 days to introduce the National Firearms Agreement, as well as comparisons with the UK’s reforms after the Hungerford and Dunblane massacres - and why the United States has not followed suit despite daily mass shootings
This episode is heavy, but it’s also about change, resilience, and the possibility of saying never again and meaning it.
Plus, we end with a lighter palate cleanser: an Ink-quisition story about henna tattoos, melonball cocktails, and a punk rock holiday.
🎧 Listen now on all podcast platforms, watch on YouTube, or on our website. Just search for Switchblade Sisters Social Club.
SOURCES:
Report of the Port Arthur Implementation Advisory Committee (Tasmanian Government, 1996)
Carcach, Carlos & Mukherjee, Satyanshu. Suicide and Firearm Mortality in Australia (Australian Institute of Criminology, 1996).
Chapman, Simon, et al. Australia’s 1996 gun law reforms: faster falls in firearm deaths, firearm suicides, and a decade without mass shootings (Injury Prevention, BMJ Journals, 2006).
R v. Martin Bryant [1996] – trial documentation and legal proceedings.
The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age coverage of the massacre and trial.
ABC News Australia (archival reporting and retrospectives on anniversaries).
BBC News and The Guardian (international perspective on the massacre and reforms).
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) – firearm death and crime statistics.
GunPolicy.org (University of Sydney, hosted by the Sydney School of Public Health).
60 Minutes Australia episodes reflecting on the massacre and reforms.