Items

• 
  2021-09-18

  The ring of Steel

  This photo shows a newspaper article published during Melbourne's 2021 lockdown. Following significant anti-lockdown protests in the CBD, the police enacted a 'ring of steel' around the CBD to prevent further protests. I was actually turned around at one of the checkpoints (unaware that the city had been shut) earlier that morning on my morning run. This was one of the most dystopian moments from the whole pandemic and highlighted the lengths the government was willing to take to stop the protests in Melbourne.
• 2021-06-20

  Covid Tests for the Alpine Resorts - HIST30060

  This comic drawn by Mark Knight, is a satirical cartoon commenting on Victoria’s requirements to obtain a negative Covid test result prior to entering the Alpine Regions, as the mountains prepared to welcome guests back to their slopes. I came across this cartoon the day it was posted in the Herald Sun, as I was packing my bags to leave for Mount Hotham early the next morning. When entering the resort and prior to driving up the mountain, there was staff in Fluro vests checking everyone had an SMS indicating their negative test result. I found it interesting that this short, 10 second process was the only one in place to keep the Alpine Regions safe from Covid. On the mountain, there was a testing site which never seemed to have any visitors, as well as Covid marshals in Hotham Central (the main building) checking to make sure everyone was wearing a mask, or face covering at all time. Due to the nature of the resort, it felt as if Covid was a thing of the past, with hospitality open, dance floors, retail shops and no social distancing on chair lifts or in accommodation.
• 
  2021-06-20

  Covid Tests for the Alpine Resorts - HIST30060

  This comic drawn by Mark Knight, is a satirical cartoon commenting on Victoria’s requirements to obtain a negative Covid test result prior to entering the Alpine Regions, as the mountains prepared to welcome guests back to their slopes. I came across this cartoon the day it was posted in the Herald Sun, as I was packing my bags to leave for Mount Hotham early the next morning. When entering the resort and prior to driving up the mountain, there was staff in Fluro vests checking everyone had an SMS indicating their negative test result. I found it interesting that this short, 10 second process was the only one in place to keep the Alpine Regions safe from Covid. On the mountain, there was a testing site which never seemed to have any visitors, as well as Covid marshals in Hotham Central (the main building) checking to make sure everyone was wearing a mask, or face covering at all time. Due to the nature of the resort, it felt as if Covid was a thing of the past, with hospitality open, dance floors, retail shops and no social distancing on chair lifts or in accommodation.
• 
  2021-05-28

  HIST30060 Frustration over lockdown restrictions in Victoria

  This is a short sentence sent into the Herald Sun newspaper just after another lockdown had been announced, that says quite simply 'Daniel Andrews, just get out of my life.' This sentiment has grown throughout the course of the pandemic, as people feel very frustrated with their freedoms being restricted, if only temporarily. Thus, this item reflects the debate around pandemic restrictions- while some see them as necessary to stop the spread, others question either the need for them or their harshness.