A poll taken in 1947 showed 58% of Australians were opposed to taking part in a global plan to help resettle Jewish refugees from Europe.

It wasn't just public opinion and the media that had turned against the Jewish people in the wake of World War II – politicians also joined in.

“We’re not compelled to accept the unwanted of the world at the dictate of the United Nations or anyone else," said Liberal MP Henry Gullet in 1946.

"Neither should Australia be the dumping ground for people whom Europe itself, in the course of 2,000 years, has not be able to absorb. I am not anti-Semitic. Indeed, very few Australians are."