A pro-Palestine protester who gatecrashed Melbourne’s Carols by Candlelight extravaganza on Christmas Eve later boasted about her antics online.
The woman stormed the stage at Sidney Myer Music Bowl on Sunday, stealing the microphone from Channel Nine hosts David Campbell and Sarah Abo before screaming ‘while you’re carolling, kids are dying in Gaza’.
She and another demonstrator, who was also waving the Palestinian flag, were then dragged away by security as the crowd booed the pair off the stage.
One of the women was arrested and issued with an infringement notice for possession of a controlled weapon, while the other was given a move on direction by officers.
Daily Mail can reveal the microphone-snatching protester, who goes by the pseudonym @violentwaitress online, is a member of pro-Palestine activism group Block the Dock.
She also has a hatred for police and champions a raft of other causes including support for sex workers and bolstering rights for members of the indigenous, LGBTQI, and refugee communities.
Pro-Palestine protester @violentwaitress (pictured) crashed Melbourne’s Carols by Candlelight event on Sunday night
In the hours after the disruption, she shared a series of posts to her Instagram story written by fellow members of her cause offering their support over the stunt.
One post, featuring footage of the protest, said: ‘Christmas is cancelled m*****f***rs’ while another by activism group Whistleblowers, Activists & Communities Alliance (WACA) read: ‘Imagine booing a woman saying kids are dying in Gaza’.
A third post also hit out at backlash online after outraged parents slammed the protesters for scaring children sitting in the audience with their families.
There was also a group of children performing on stage when the havoc unfolded who had to be rushed to safety.
‘I don’t give a f*** about your carols,’ the third post, which featured an image of the grinch, began.
‘And every kid in that audience is gonna [sic] grow up and be Pro-Palestine or they’re gonna [sic] grow up and be a zionist and tbh [to be honest] we will handle that when they’re older but right now they’re fine and nobody was traumatised.’
Concluding the highlight reel, the woman shared a selfie, writing: ‘Anyway, I’m done goodnight xx’.
The woman managed to unfurl the Palestinian flag next to the orchestra pit
She then ran over to grab the microphone from Nine hosts David Campbell and Sarah Abo
The woman reshared a series of posts about her stunt to her Instagram story before signing off for the night with the above photo
On social media, she frequently shares information advocating for marginalised groups and posts anti-cop rhetoric.
This week, she called for people to boycott Midsumma Festival – an LGBTQIA+ cultural event – because Victorian police officers would be in attendance to manage the crowds.
In the post, she claimed cops should not be allowed to monitor the event because they ‘collaborate with zionists and nazis’, ‘murder refugees both inside and outside of detention’ and ‘kill indigenous folks in custody’.
However, her primary ventures appear to revolve around pro-Palestine rallies with WACA and Block the Dock – which are both behind a slew of high-profile demonstrations across Melbourne in recent months.
Photos posted online show the woman protesting at a pro-Palestine rally out the front of Israeli military weapons manufacturer, Elbit Systems, in Port Melbourne, in October.
Last week, multiple Block the Dock protesters were arrested after blocking a Port Melbourne road by gluing their hands to the road, setting up concrete barrels, and locking themselves to cars, causing major traffic delays.
In another incident, two days earlier, dozens of demonstrators staged a ‘die-in’ protest by laying on the ground outside The Age, AFR and Nine Melbourne offices in ‘PRESS’ vests and caps to rally against the deaths of 95 journalists in Gaza.
Daily Mail has reached out to the woman for comment.
Carols by Candlelight was live on air on Sunday night when the two women ran across the stage, waving Palestinian flags.
As the pair grappled with security, a stunned Campbell tried to ease the situation as young families watched on in horror.
‘Take it easy, it’s okay,’ Campbell said. ‘Everybody relax and settle down.’
‘Everyone is aloud to have their say but we do have kids here, we just want to make sure those kids are safe, they will be back out here in a second,’ he added, referring to the stage performers.
‘It is a very hard time in the world at the moment and there is a lot of pain out there.’
The woman has a collection of activism projects plastered across her social media page
A second protester who jumped on stage was filmed rallying at a pro-Palestine event earlier on Sunday (pictured)
Co-host Sarah Abo thanked the crew for their quick action in removing the protesters safely.
‘It is the climate, we are in Melbourne,’ she said.
‘Incredible work here by the team as well.’
The crowd was heard applauding as the kids returned to the stage and the show continued.
Furious parents later flocked online to blast the protesters for interrupting the Christmas family-friendly event.
‘So disrespectful at this time of year and disgusting subjecting children to this commotion,’ one woman said.
‘They should all be arrested. Carols by candlelight is not the time or place.’
However, others lauded the protesters actions and threw their support behind the cause.
‘If the Palestine protest at carols by candle light makes you uncomfortable. good,’ one person said.
The woman was dragged off the stage by security after interrupting the Christmas tradition
Another added: ‘If you think Christmas carols broadcast being interrupted by a protest is bad, imagine being bombed to death.’
Anti-Defamation Commission chair Dvir Abramovich was highly critical of the incident, and described it as ‘tactics of intimidation’.
‘Carols by Candlelight was once a safe place for families to celebrate the beauty of Christmas, but no more, as this tornado of prejudice is destroying our sense of security,’ he said.
‘I trust that law enforcement will identify those responsible for such vile actions and prosecute them to the full extent of the law.’
Executive Council of n Jewry co-CEO Alex Ryvchin described the protesters as ‘extremists’.
‘You can always count on anti-Israel extremists to make everything about them and to appall decent, ordinary people,’ Mr Ryvchin said.
‘The chorus of boos tells them loud and clear they’re not wanted.’
The carols continued as normal despite the protests and the rain (above)