Big Scary, Violent Soho, Smith St & More Unite To Support Asylum Seekers

This year's Laneway Festival tour may be over, but its impact might be further-reaching than expected after stalwart Australian outfit Big Scary posted a photograph of themselves and several of their line-up cohort expressing condemnation of the country's offshore processing of asylum seekers.

In the pic, they can be seen alongside members of fellow Aussie acts including Violent Soho, The Smith St Band and Hermitude, as well as solo artists Kučka, Japanese Wallpaper, Airling and Kirin J Callinan (who also served as Laneway's MC), with some of the musos holding handwritten signs that read "MUSICIANS AGAINST OFFSHORE PROCESSING" and "#LETTHEMSTAY".

The photo protest, which comes in the wake of the High Court's dismissal of a legal challenge against the practice — and, thus, essentially the case of 260 refugees (including 37 babies) that has gripped people's attention in recent weeks — was taken by Sydney photographer Daniel Boud and posted to Facebook by the Melbourne band this afternoon. 

"It felt good to stand together with a bunch of great people and great bands to join the chorus of Australians saying ‪#‎letthemstay‬," Big Scary explained of the photo in their post.

"We know it's a complex issue. We know there's no simple solution. But we all agree on one thing: how our country is currently treating asylum seekers is not OK. We have the human and financial resources to provide compassion and safety for anyone seeking asylum.

"Not in our name. Not with our money."

See the full pic and the band's accompanying post below.