By Shifrah Blustein
New research shows that Maribyrnong Council’s security patrols program is making Footscray residents less safe.
Undertaken by Footscray Community Response, a grassroots organisation opposed to punitive solutions to problems of safety and so-called ‘anti-social behaviour’, the research also reveals serious breaches of human rights and anti-discrimination laws.
Since September 2025, patrols of private security guards accompanying council officers have operated around Nicholson Street Mall.
The program was announced without consultation after the police killing in April 2025 of Abdifatah Ahmed, a man from a refugee background who was sleeping rough in Footscray and experiencing poor mental health. At the time and since, a small number of vocal traders called for tougher responses to symptoms of social exclusion.
In February, councillors will vote on whether to make the program permanent.
Ahead of the vote, Footscray Community Response collated analysis from community observers alongside interviews with impacted individuals and service providers. The research shows that the program systematically targets unhoused people, who are predominantly from African-Australian backgrounds and experiencing mental health struggles. This has entrenched mistrust and hostility, and has in some instances exacerbated the behaviours Council is concerned about.
The approach has also deterred people from accessing mental health, substance use and material aid services. If properly resourced, these organisations could address these behaviours that services claim are symptoms of the very structural inequalities the program inflames.
The research also found that security guards have physically assaulted and threatened to assault people, while Council has demonstrated dubious governance and accountability practices and no transparent complaints processes. Marginalised women have been particularly impacted as they are seen as ‘easy targets’ as security guards report hesitation to physically confront men.
Controversially, the security program focuses on enforcing outdated prohibitions on public drinking – despite the decriminalisation of public intoxication by the Victorian government. The report argues that Council’s approach heightens health and safety concerns by coercing people to consume their alcohol extremely quickly.
The research recommends a fundamental rethink of the assumption that enforcement-based responses can reduce or prevent behaviours arising from structural inequalities like lack of access to housing, health services and a liveable income. Instead, the report urges Council to consider extensive evidence showing that increased safety and amenity for all results from more equal and caring communities where everyone’s basic needs are met and people feel included.
As one interviewee stated: “When you’ve been on the streets with no support, not even family, you lose your sense that you even deserve rights. You’ve [FCR members] made me feel dignified, like I deserve respect. The changes I’m making are because of the support you’ve given me, to show that I am valued and equal. That is the kind of acceptance and support that people in Footscray need, not more policing.”
Community members will protest the program’s extension outside the Town Hall at 5:45pm on Tuesday 17 February ahead of the vote.
