Steve Brook

Who is Steve Brook?

Steve Brook, born in London, England and trained as a compositor in Sydney, Australia, is a Melbourne based satirical writer with a history of involvement in progressive causes, following a period as a journalist with Polish Radio in Warsaw.

Owing to his literary and historical talents, his writing, journalism, and biographical reflection is a significant source of documentation of the Jewish left in Australia and its international connections from outside academia and from the point of view of a non-ideological, humanist insider.

He has a Master of Arts from Monash University in Melbourne.

His account of time spent with the English language service of Polish Radio is a sympathetic, but not uncritical look at Poland under Soviet hegemony where there were attempts to have 'socialism with a human face', as well as the Polish cultural scene in the 1960s and 1970s and the political use of anti-Semitism in Poland. Additionally, he was a journalist at 3CR radio in Melbourne in the 1970s when there were strong political differences between left factions, including the influence of local Maoists.

He has also been a key member of the Australian Jewish Democratic Society, a progressive Australian organisation with roots going back to the pre-World War 2 left. His published writing, journalism, and frequent letters to the editor are an important source of otherwise undocumented political and social history of the Melbourne Left. In addition, he writes frequent letters to the editor to the Australian Jewish News and the Newsletter of AJDS on Israel/Palestine issues.