Brisbane: a town of hills and old Queenslanders. XXXX and ceiling fans. It’s a town with a beach culture, even though it’s not really on the coast – it’s along the imaginatively titled Brisbane River. It’s a town that’s outgrown it’s boots, and now looks uncomfortable and out of place when compared to cities like Melbourne and Sydney. And so it should – it’s the third son that’s never really grown into its skin – and to change it, to force it into a lineup as a ‘world city’ whatever that ridiculous piece of double talk means, would do it a disservice. And ultimately, it’s not really something that most of the locals seem to be interested in – not while there’s the famous Brisbane lifestyle to enjoy.
And what’s not to enjoy? There’s plenty of pubs fronting the river, and there’s sunshine almost every single day – clear skies, warm climate, riverside views. It’s an admirable way of living, and Brisbanites make the most of it – you can see office workers taking of their ties, shrugging of their jackets and ambling down the mall towards a pub with a view to the river every afternoon. They’ll fetch up somewhere in the sunshine, maybe finding a little bit of shade if the sun’s too warm, and have a quiet beer. It’s hard to fault. And there’s plenty of things to do – there’s Suncorp stadium, the Gabba, Lang Park. There’s cricket teams to cheer on, as well as rugby league, rugby union and soccer teams. And if you get bored of organised sport, there’s plenty of fishing spots along the river or Moreton Bay.
And yet, there’s deeper, more disturbing currents flowing beneath the surface. Brisbane has always been seen a bit of a joke by those living south of the city – and the rest of QLD has often been lumped into that same ridiculous category. There’s a story that QLD always ‘swings first and swings the hardest’ and there’s certainly evidence for that – it’s a bit like the American south. I lost track of the number of firearms shops I saw on the way into Brisbane, and the racial tensions around the place are scary. There’s a disturbing trend for evangelicalism, and a radicalness to local politics that is unmatched elsewhere in Australia. After all, this is the state that gave us Bjelke-Petersen and Pauline Hanson, not to mention Bob Katter and Campbell Newman. Scary stuff indeed.
It’s like there’s two different Brisbanes – the friendly, easy-as-you-go side that everyone sees, the side that drags in the local and international tourists. It’s the party place. It’s the holiday place. It’s beautiful one day, and perfect the next. And then, underneath, there’s the hard core fundamentalism that lurks beneath the surface.