2020 Stephen Murray-Smith Memorial Lecture: Erik Jensen, The Man with No Face

The 2020 Stephen Murray-Smith Memorial Lecture is a powerful address that explores how political systems impact the lives of individuals.

Journalist and author Erik Jensen discusses the effect of seeing a photograph of asylum seeker Hamed Shamshiripour, taken after he died by suicide on Manus Island in 2017. At the time Erik was editor of The Saturday Paper and still regrets not publishing this devastating image for the rest of Australia to see.

In this personal, passionate and thought-provoking address, Erik speaks about anger, objectivity and a feature of national politics he calls ‘the Australian facelessness’ – the way we ‘other’ people and then ‘disappear’ them from our minds.

About the Stephen Murray-Smith Memorial Lecture

This annual lecture commemorates the contribution made by Stephen Murray-Smith, founding editor of Overland magazine, to Australian intellectual life. The lecture promotes research and debate in the broad areas of Stephen’s interest and influence.

More to explore

Explore other Stephen Murray-Smith Memorial Lectures.

If this article has affected you in any way, or you would like to talk to someone, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467. If you are in immediate danger, call 000.