This page contains the unexpurgated R-rated version of my speech. Be aware it contains confronting images and language. If you are easily offended, you may prefer to read a Vanilla version from which the images and video links have been removed. Those with strong stomachs can also explore the Appendix of supplementary information. I have compiled this material, not to titillate nor to reward the people who have generated it, but because I felt it was important that we ordinary citizens and voters be aware of the obscene and offensive material that is circulating about our prime minister and our governor general. As I say at the end of the speech, we have to stop this and each of us as individuals can say: It Stops with Me.
Her Rights at Work (R-rated version)
The Political Persecution of Australia’s First Female Prime Minister
By Anne Summers AO Ph.D
2012 Human Rights and Social Justice Lecture
University of Newcastle
31 August 2012
© Anne Summers 2012 This speech is copyright and is not to be reproduced or quoted from without the express permission of the author. Contact: Email: drannesummers@gmail.com Twitter: @SummersAnne or Website: www.annesummers.com.au
My speech at the University of Newcastle
Good afternoon everyone and thank you for coming along to hear me. It is a great honour for me to have been invited to deliver the 2012 Human Rights and Social Justice Lecture to the University of Newcastle.It is also a great opportunity for me to be able to share with you some ideas and research that I have been developing for some months now. The invitation to deliver this lecture acted as something of a catalyst and also as a deadline to bring this work to a form that could be shared.
Of course, I had no idea when I nominated “the political persecution of Australia’s first female prime minister” as my subject that it would become so topical. However events of the past couple of weeks have underscored the need to really shine a light on the way in which her fellow citizens are treating our prime minister.
In this lecture I want to examine what I contend is the sexist and discriminatory treatment of Australia’s first female prime minister by the Opposition and by some elements in Australian society.
And I must issue a warning that I will be using sexually-based language and, in the accompanying PowerPoint presentation, showing some images that some people are bound to find offensive. If you think you might be offended maybe you should not read any further.
ON 24 JUNE 2010 Julia Eileen Gillard became Australia’s first female prime minister. She had served as deputy prime minister to Kevin Rudd in the Labor government that was elected on 24 November 2007. As DPM she had enjoyed enormous popularity and although the means by which Gillard assumed the top job was controversial – and became more so over the course of time – initially her elevation was greeted with widespread enthusiasm. There was a palpable sense of history in the media coverage, with most outlets treating Gillard’s ascension as an important event, to be taken seriously. The public seemed pretty pleased as well. Her popularity rating was high. Women and girls, especially, were thrilled at this milestone having been reached.
Gillard has said that women who were just so happy to see a woman running our country sent her gifts, often jewellery. Gillard said that she always tried to wear these pieces of jewellery at least once, and at an event where she would be photographed, so that the giver could see how much she appreciated the gesture.
Just a few weeks into the job, Gillard called an election, seeking to legitimize her position through the validation of a popular vote. The election, held on 21 August 2010, failed to deliver her an outright majority. However she was able to form a government by negotiating agreements with the Greens and three Independents.
In order to secure a deal with the Greens, Gillard had to agree to introduce a price on carbon and thereby break a commitment she had made during the campaign that there would be “no carbon tax under a government that I lead”.
Other prime ministers have changed policies or gone back on promises. Paul Keating did not proceed with the L-A-W tax cuts. John Howard introduced a GST. Both were accused of backflips and of breaking promises. Neither was ever called a “liar”.
The term “Juliar” seems to have been coined by broadcaster Alan Jones and quickly adopted by opponents of Gillard. It featured prominently on banners at a rally protesting the carbon tax that took place in Canberra in March 2011.
The so-called Convoy of No Confidence rally in Canberra was the first time that many of us were exposed to the virulence of the attacks that were beginning to be made against Gillard. It was the first time we saw her referred to as “Bob Brown’s bitch” and it was the first time we saw the slogan, “Ditch the Witch”.
Little did we know that this was just the beginning.
Over the past two years Tony Abbott has relentlessly used Gillard’s backflip on the carbon tax to depict her as unreliable, as untrustworthy and as a liar. The notion that the prime minister is a “liar” has now been firmly planted in the public mind.
Journalists have commented on Tony Abbott’s practice of heckling Julia Gillard across the dispatch box whenever she is speaking in Parliament.[1] Normally he does it sotto voce so that only she can hear, but on August 20 the Deputy Speaker heard him referring to the prime minister as a “liar” and demanded he withdraw. It is “unparliamentary” to call someone a “liar”.
As you probably recall, Abbott’s withdrawal was qualified, so much so that he was thrown out of Parliament for an hour, becoming the first Leader of the Opposition to be ejected from the House since the mid-1980s.
This might all be part of the normal cut and thrust of politics. Most observers of Canberra today agree that the current political environment has become especially toxic. The hung parliament, and the expectation on the part of the Opposition that it is just one lost vote on the floor of the House away from government has raised the stakes to levels not previously seen in Australian politics.
As a result we are experiencing an era in politics where there is very little civility. The overall temperature of discussion and debate is torrid and people use language towards and about each other that even a few years ago would have been considered totally out of line. This, sadly, is the new norm.
But what is NOT normal is the way in which the prime minister is attacked, vilified or demeaned in ways that are specifically related to her sex (or, if you like, her gender). Calling her a “liar” might not be gender-specific, although as I have pointed out, it was not a term used against back-flipping male prime ministers.
There are countless examples, however, where the prime minister is attacked, vilified or demeaned in ways that do specifically relate to her sex and I propose to devote the rest of this lecture to describing, categorizing and exploring the implications of them.
Some of the examples are benign, in the sense that they are examples of a double-standard, of a woman being treated less seriously than a man of similar status would be.
The most obvious and most frequent example is the way in which the prime minister is almost always referred to as “Julia”. I offer as an example, the banner headline in The Australian just over a week ago during the reporting of the Slater & Gordon matter:
“WHAT JULIA TOLD HER FIRM”[2]
Have you ever seen a headline “WHAT JOHN TOLD…” or ‘WHAT PAUL TOLD…”? No you haven’t, for the simple reason that previous prime ministers were accorded the basic respect of being referred to by their last names.
There is a similar lack of respect in the way the federal Opposition constantly just uses the female pronoun to refer to the prime minister. Tony Abbott is a serial offender – constantly referring just to “she” or “her” in his press appearances – but he is not the only one.
Federal Hansard shows that the following exchange took place during Question Time in the House of Representatives on 21 August 2012. The prime minister was answering a question when the Manager of Opposition Business, Christopher Pyne, interrupted her on a Point of Order:
Mr Pyne: Madam Deputy Speaker, on a point of order. She is defying your ruling. You asked her to be directly relevant and it was a very specific question.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: I actually stated I would listen carefully to the Prime Minister’s answer as she had only just commenced. It is for the chair to determine relevancy or not.
Mr Albanese: A point of order, Deputy Speaker: under the standing order which requires that people be referred to according to their titles, ‘Prime Minister’ is the title.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The Leader of the House will resume his seat. The Prime Minister has the call. [3]
This is politics, you might say. Everyone is fair game.
Perhaps. But should our politicians be the ones to lower the threshold of what is acceptable commentary about each other? Sadly too many of them are – in ways that affect all women MPs as well as the prime minister.
I was told this week by a federal MP that there is what she called “misogynists’ corner” on the Coalition benches. This is a bunch of members, all of them male, who, she said, “positively bray” whenever a female frontbencher from the government goes to the dispatch box to give an answer.
And it is not just the men. Opposition front bencher Sophie Mirabella has been known to call out, “Here comes the weather girl” when the attractive Kate Ellis, Minister for Employment Participation and Early Childhood and Childcare, goes to answer a question.[4]
Should our politicians be setting higher standards? I think they should, for the simple fact that it is now possible to posit that this conduct is having a negative influence on the national conversation.
I know countless instances of people who routinely use terms like “lying bitch” when speaking about the prime minister. What we are seeing now has gone way beyond derogatory comments about her clothes, her accent, her “arse” (to quote Germaine Greer) and even her earlobes – the comments that many of us found offensive only a year ago.
The threshold is being progressively lowered, so much so that it is now pretty much in the gutter, if not the sewer.
I want to give you some other examples, all of them recent, and all of them involving friends of mine, which go to demonstrate how much the contempt for the prime minister has leached out of the political domain and into the daily lives of ordinary Australians:
- A few weeks ago in Darwin my friend was picked up from her hotel by a cab. The taxi driver said to her, totally out of the blue: “How could you be staying at the same hotel as the lying cunt”. Apparently Julia Gillard had stayed at the same hotel the week before when she was in Darwin to welcome the Indonesian president. The taxi driver continued: “Someone should have shot her while she was here. Everyone wants to do it.”
- In July in Sydney a stallholder in the flower market at Flemington apologised to a friend of mine who was buying some flowers for having to add GST “for Julia”; he then followed it by saying “we’ve got to get rid of the bitch”.
- Another friend told me about an encounter his mother, whom he describes as “quietly spoken and conservative-looking”, had at a medical office in Albury when she went to submit a form for her latest MRI. The man behind the counter said to her, unprovoked: “I’ll send it off to the red-haired bitch”. (Note: an earlier version of this speech stated that this incident occurred at the Medibank Private offices in Albury. I have since discovered that this is not the case. I made the mistake in good faith, acting on information provided by a friend that he believed to be correct. However, having been alerted to the error, I have corrected it and apologise unreservedly to Medibank Private and especially the staff at the Albury offices.)
IN MY REMARKS today I want to focus on depictions and comments about Julia Gillard that are utterly and undeniably sexist.
What I want to establish is the extent to which the prime minister is being treated unfairly as a woman and because she’s a woman. I want to identify ways in which Julia Gillard, Australia’s first female prime minister, is being persecuted both because she is a woman AND in ways that would be impossible to apply to a man.
We will get started with a little trip down Memory Lane:
I am sure you are all familiar with these examples.
I played that tape mostly to remind you of them, but also to provide a benchmark of what we used to think was awful and offensive. Sadly, things have got much, much worse in the past year.
If you are anything like me, you probably had no idea that this stuff is out there. You, if you are anything like me, were probably still outraged by “ditch the witch” and the like. Now, only eighteen months after that poster was first aired on national television, I have to report that that sentiment is tame compared with some of the things that are being suggested to, or about, the prime minister today.
This material is distributed via a number of different means. With today’s information technology anyone can be a publisher and thousands of us are. Mostly we use these tools to benign effect: to chat with friends, share photographs, exchange ideas or information, or just to add a bit of entertainment to our daily lives.
But others are increasingly using these same tools to vilify, to degrade and to undermine the authority of the office of the prime minister and the present incumbent, Julia Gillard.
Email is one such tool.
We are all familiar with chain emails. Usually they are harmless and inoffensive, even if they can be annoying. But sometimes they are downright offensive. This one, for instance:
This is one of the infamous cartoons sent to members of Parliament by the obnoxious Larry Pickering. I will say a bit more about him in a moment.
There are also the viral emails, the ones that people forward on and on to all their friends. Mostly harmless – I get a lot of blonde jokes sent to me – but when ugly images such as this one go viral, it all adds to the overall climate of disrespect that is demeaning to and which is undermining the authority of our prime minister.
I would argue that it is also having an impact on her personal ratings. You would be aware that while recent polls show the government gaining, Julia Gillard’s personal popularity, and her ratings as preferred prime minister are stagnant or, on some polls, falling even further.
Is it any wonder when she is subject to this sort of thing?
YouTube is another tool.
Anyone can make a video and post it on YouTube. What surprises me is that ordinary people would bother to record themselves slagging off at the prime minister. I won’t show any examples but you can search for them if you want to.
For instance, in one such video, called – creatively – Julia Gillard: the world’s biggest slut a young man who does not even have the guts to show his face, but has a scarf covering his features, says – among many other offensive things:
Hey just a guess, you also do not like Julia the lying bitch…. One has to remember that Julia has the rags on once a month. “WHY” Because she deserves it… (That was posted in June 2012.)
And Facebook is probably now the weapon du monde. In fact I would say that the lethal combination of Photoshop and Facebook has taken our political discourse to places we probably did not think possible. We just saw an example of an ugly Photoshopped image going round on email. The extent of the distribution of similar – or worse – images on Facebook is so much greater because of the massive numbers of people involved.
Facebook was expected to reach 1 billion members worldwide this month.[5] In Australia, there are supposedly more than 10 million Facebook users.[6] So the potential is there to reach very significant numbers of people using this social networking tool. And of course a lot of companies are devoting a lot of resources at present into figuring out just how to exploit the commercial potential of this.
Large numbers of people are already using Facebook to express political views.
Until I began to do research for this lecture, I did not appreciate the extent to which Facebook is being used as a vehicle for hate speech. Julia Gillard is not the only target. There is a large amount of racist material and I guess if one were to go looking, there would be many other examples of offensive material.
But I was looking for sites that dealt with Julia Gillard and here are a few of the things that I found:
There is a Facebook page called Julia Gillard – Worst PM in Australian history. It was established in July 2011 and describes itself in the following terms:
This page is a community of people who like to take their anger and frustration out on this useless oxygen thief, Julia Gillard – Our motto is ‘Friends don’t let friends like Julia Gillard’
This is a very busy and much visited site and it contains a great deal of material of a highly suggestive and sexual nature. I have included some of the worst examples in the Appendix to this speech and will not show them now.
Instead I will just give you a taste of some of the milder stuff:
One of the features of this page is the very large numbers of comments visitors make about these sexually suggestive pictures. It is not uncommon for there to be 500 or 600 hundred comments under a single photo.
Another feature of this page is to invite people to provide captions or commentary on straight-forward news photos. Two such examples are the historic photograph of Governor-General Quentin Bryce with Julia Gillard just after the latter had been sworn in as Australia’s first female prime minister, and a number of photos of Gillard with Barack Obama during the US President’s visit to Canberra last year.
The comments are almost without exception extremely crude, sexual and sometimes quite violent. Those that also involve President Obama are often racist as well.
And what makes Facebook different from email, or from the hate-filled comments from cyber trolls that appear under online opinion pieces in newspapers or on the ABC, is that Facebook users are much more likely to use their real names and their photographs – so we know who they are.
The other thing about Facebook is that we can measure what is going on.
For instance, the Facebook page Julia Gillard – Worst PM in Australian History had 15,686 “Likes” and 43, 265 people were “talking about” it on 22 August this year. By August 28 – in just six days – this had grown to 18,051 likes with 45,760 talking about it.
(Fortunately this is way short on the 132,000 people who “like” Julia Gillard on her official Facebook page).
Facebook has given us new ways to intimidate, bully, harass and defame on a remarkable and previously unimaginable scale. There was another very famous Facebook page that has since been taken down.
It was part of the Alf Stewart meme – a series of extremely crude FaceBook pages that have taken over the persona of a character in the soapie Home and Away and used him to promote some pretty disgusting notions. You will not be surprised to hear that most of these denigrate women and some of them actually glorify rape.
The one to which I am referring shows Alf saying: “Julz you fucking slut” on top of a photo of Gillard which has superimposed over it the words: “Smash my box Alf”. Under that is another photo of Alf, and the words: “If I wanted a greasy red box I’d go to KFC ya slut”.
This little graphic had been “liked” 43,253 times by the time it had been taken down. Perhaps just as alarming was the fact that it had been “shared” by 2,099 people. If each of those people who shared it with their friends had 100 Facebook friends, this image has potentially been distributed to over 200,000 people. (That’s more than one-third of the population of Newcastle).
It must be very hard being Julia Gillard and knowing this stuff is out there.
But does she have any redress? What are the prime minister’s rights at work?
I think it is reasonable to ask whether the prime minister is being treated in ways that are actually unlawful or even illegal under federal legislation designed to protect the rights of workers.
But because politicians (and therefore prime ministers) do not generally speaking njoy these rights, I want for the sake of my argument to look at the situation in a somewhat different way.
Imagine that Julia Gillard is the CEO of a very large company, Australia Pty Ltd, and imagine that all of you here today are the company’s shareholders. And let’s agree that the people seated in the front row here today constitute the company’s board of directors.
I will now take you through your responsibilities and obligations as shareholders and directors to the CEO you have employed to run your company.
There are laws passed by the Commonwealth Parliament that set the standard for conduct in the workplace as accepted by the general Australian community. They reflect the norms and expected behavior within the vast majority of workplaces.
One such law is the federal Sex Discrimination Act 1984.[7]
Section 5 of this Act defines direct sex discrimination as “less favourable treatment” of a woman compared with a man in the same circumstances.[8] Section 14 of the Act covers the place of employment as the area where such discrimination has occurred. [9]
I think we can easily conclude that any discrimination against Gillard on the grounds of her sex has occurred in the course of her “employment” as CEO of Australia. What needs to be established is whether she has been subjected to any form of less favourable treatment relating to her employment because of her gender.
I believe that we can clearly make the case that she has been treated less favourably because of her sex.
Let me give three examples where she has, in the course of her employment, been subject to comments that are both offensive per se and which relate specifically only to women. In other words, these same things could not and would not have been said of a man.
First, let’s recall the comments of Liberal Senator Bill Heffernan in 2007 who said, speaking of Julia Gillard, that “anyone who chooses to deliberately remain barren … they’ve got no idea what life’s about”. [10]
We do not describe men who do not have children as “barren”; its usage relates only to women and thus these remarks are a clear example of sex discrimination in employment.
My second example comes from former Leader of the Labor Party, Mark Latham, who said only last year: “Choice in Gillard’s case is very, very specific. Particularly because she’s on the public record saying she made a deliberate choice not to have children to further her parliamentary career”.
“I think having children is the great loving experience of any lifetime. And by definition you haven’t got as much love in your life if you make that particular choice,”he told ABC radio. “One would have thought to experience the greatest loving experience in life – having children – you wouldn’t particularly make that choice”.[11]
I do not think that men are called upon to make choices about paternity in order to pursue careers. This is, again, a sex-specific situation and an example of a person being disadvantaged in her employment because of her sex. Can we think of any instances where a man has been asked about such choices? Both the original question to Gillard and the use put to it by a so-called commentator constitute less favourable treatment.
My third example is from the Leader of the Opposition, Tony Abbott, who in February 2011 demanded that Gillard “make an honest woman of herself” by taking the carbon tax to an election.[12] The expression of course implies dishonesty and “make an honest woman of” refers only to women, so is inherently sexist, but more pertinently, its normal use is in relation to single women. “To make an honest woman” of someone usually entails a man marrying a woman who is pregnant. The use of this term in relation to Gillard was a non-too-subtle reminder to voters of the CEO’s single status. There could perhaps even be a case here on the grounds of marital status under the Sex Discrimination Act.
There are many more examples I could cite, such as:
- the comment made in July by a Kevin Rudd backer about the time it was taking to bring Gillard down: “We need her to bleed out”, as this person charmingly put it[13]; or
- the recent description by David Farley, CEO of the Australian Agricultural Company, of Julia Gillard as “an unproductive old cow” [14] – you would not call a man “a cow”
but I think I have made my case.
No male CEO of Australia has ever been subjected to the same treatment.
The federal magistrates court has found that an Aboriginal man who was subjected to constant derogatory comments about his race had been discriminated against on the grounds of race.[15] I suggest that were such a case to be brought forward based on what Julia Gillard has had to endure, that there would be a finding of sex discrimination.
This then creates obligations for you, the board of directors, to rectify the situation and remove the discrimination or be held liable for the damage done to her – both her reputation and her emotional wellbeing.
I think we can also make the case that the CEO has been subject to sexual harassment in her employment as set out by sections 28A and 28B of the Sex Discrimination Act.[16]
It is well accepted under the Act that the sending of sexually explicit material via email or text to a person constitutes sexual harassment.[17] The definition also covers accessing sexually explicit Internet sites.
Interestingly, a recent test case under the Sex Discrimination Act as to whether exposing a worker to pornography at work constituted sex discrimination (as opposed to sexual harassment) was settled out of court.[18]
The creating of sexually explicit Internet sites or contributing to ones on Facebook that I have described would easily fall within the definition of sexual harassment.
I have already shown you an example from the loathsome Larry Pickering.
Larry Pickering has suddenly become very famous – if not infamous – after being identified by the CEO in her press conference on Thursday 23 August as someone who publishes “a vile and sexist website”. Gillard said: “for many, many months now I have been the subject of a very sexist smear campaign from people for whom I have no respect”.
What she did not say is that for many months now Pickering has bombarded not just her but every member of federal parliament and every senator on almost a daily basis with emails containing hate-filled commentary about Gillard. Often these commentaries have been accompanied by cartoons, many of which – like the one I have shown – depict Gillard naked and wearing a huge strap-on dildo.
Pickering was infamous back in the days when he was cartoonist for The Australian for producing annual calendars in which all the (then all male) politicians had extremely long penises that were used to supposedly entertaining effect. It seems that Pickering cannot envisage a prime minister without a penis – so he had to give Gillard a strap-on. When Facebook (where he publishes some of his material), forced him to stop drawing her this way, be started depicting her with a dildo thrown over her shoulder.[19]
I have seen many examples of these emails – shown to me by MPs – and I know (1) that they go to every member and senator and (2) they contain vile and disgusting images of our political leaders, most often Julia Gillard and, until his resignation from Parliament, Bob Brown.
Yet no Member of Parliament has denounced them, not in public at least. I find this almost beyond comprehension. Nor, before Gillard mentioned them at her press conference, had they been written about by anyone in the parliamentary press gallery. Surely it is newsworthy that Australia’s first female prime minister is under such constant illustrated attack. Surely it is noteworthy that the portrayals of her are obscene and indisputably sexist.
Surely it would merit a report somewhere in the media by one of the journalists who churn out stories daily from Canberra.
Instead we have had what one might almost call a conspiracy of silence.
Is it because the images are so vile that there was an implicit agreement between parliamentarians and the press to simply pretend they did not exist? Or were they just dismissed as the crazed work of a cranky old hack?
I sense that many journalists in the press gallery are now somewhat embarrassed about their failure to report on and thereby smoke out these endless vicious attacks on the prime minister.
WE COULD ALSO make the case that the CEO of Australia Pty Ltd has been bullied. Comcare, the Commonwealth workplace health and safety agency defines bullying as:
Repeated behaviour that could reasonably be considered to be humiliating, intimidating, threatening or demeaning to a person, or group of persons, and which therefore creates a risk to health and safety.[20]
There can be little doubt that these sexually explicit images of Julia Gillard by her abusive detractors are acts of bullying in the sense that they are solely designed to demean and diminish her, humiliate and intimidate her. There is currently a Parliamentary inquiry examining bullying in the workplace[21]. It will be interesting to see whether its findings would support this conclusion.
Turning to the industrial relations law, would the CEO have any resort under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)?
Section 340 prohibits an employer from taking “adverse action” against an employee, which includes discriminating against an employee, while Section 351 prohibits an employer from taking adverse action against an employee because of the employee’s sex or marital status. An employer can be liable for the actions of their employees and for the way co-workers treat each other.
Increasingly, industrial tribunals and commissions are having to grapple with this new phenomena, and are being called upon to determine whether conduct on FaceBook can warrant dismissal.
Already there are many examples where Fair Work Australia has been cited when employees have been dismissed for acts of sexual harassment or inappropriate conduct on social media sites such as Facebook against co-workers.
(This definition includes supervisors and bosses as well as more junior employees).[22]
While the tests may be different from those under sex discrimination law, there is little doubt that the type of commentary and images to which Julia Gillard is routinely and repeatedly subjected to would come within the type of conduct prohibited in all other workplaces. An employer would be liable to their employee and may have to pay a civil penalty (a fine) under section 539.
(Indeed, there could even be the possibility of prison. In July a Bendigo magistrate gave a suspended prison sentence to the creator of the FaceBook page: Benders Root-Rate. Yes, you did hear me correctly and, yes, it does mean what you think it means: a Facebook page in which the creators rated named people’s sexual performance.)
Back in the 1970s when women were for the first time getting jobs in places such as the police force, the fire brigade, BHP and other previously all-male workplaces, it was common for these women to find pornographic photographs placed inside their lockers. These were an expression of hostility on the part of some of their male co-workers who apparently resented the intrusion of these groundbreaking women into what had been all-male domains.
Aren’t we seeing a similar process happening now? When Julia Gillard logs onto her computer and sees images of herself naked, or holding suggestive signs, isn’t she being subjected to similarly hostile acts by people who apparently resent her being in the job?
I would say Yes.
I think that we can fairly conclude that the CEO of Australia Pty Ltd has been subject to conduct that is outlawed under both the Sex Discrimination Act and Fair Work Australia. You as shareholders of Australia Pty Ltd would expect the board of directors of the company to not just pay any applicable fines and damages, but to do something about changing the culture of the company that allows this kind of behaviour to flourish. The courts can make orders to stop certain conduct and order other conduct to occur – as shareholders you could demand the directors put in place some positive actions.
I HOPE THAT IN making the case in this way I have persuaded you that the prime minister is entitled to feel aggrieved by the way she is being treated.
And so are we.
It says something about our country and about us that we could subject our leader to such vile abuse. It is even worse that we somehow think it is OK and even funny to demean her sexually in such crude and disgusting ways. What has happened to us?
How can we account for these levels of vitriol, for this hatred?
Can it really be the case that a tax – a carbon tax – could really spur so many people to such levels of hatred? I find that impossible to believe, so I have to conclude that the persecution of Julia Gillard has to be about something else.
Is it just the simple fact that she is a woman?
It is difficult not to conclude that we Australians are – so far at least - simply incapable of accepting a woman in charge of our country.
It is worth remembering that we were one of the last countries in our region to have a female prime minister or president. India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, the Philippines, South Korea and of course New Zealand – who managed two! – all had women leaders before we did.
But surely Julia Gillard’s continuing unpopularity is not just because she is a woman? It can’t be because she was incredibly popular as Deputy Prime Minister.
There are two reasons why Australians are having difficulty liking their prime minister.
For all of our history a prime minister has been a man in a suit who has been married (to a woman) and who has children. If our first female leader also happens to be our first unmarried, childless, living with a partner, not to mention atheist, prime minister then perhaps it is not surprising that the population is having some trouble getting their heads around this new reality.
The fact that we have had ten female leaders at state or territory level apparently has not adequately prepared us for this.
But I think there is something else at work.
And that is the deliberate sabotaging of the prime minister by political enemies, who include people within her own party, and who are using an array of weapons which include personal denigration, some of it of a sexual or gendered nature, to undermine her and erode her authority.
It was not always so.
I like to quote a story that did the rounds in Sydney a couple of years ago about the hard men of the NSW Right who got very nervous when they learned that then DPM Julia Gillard was planning to attend a big Labor function in the western suburbs. How would the traditional women of the west react to Gillard, the Sussex Street boys fretted: after all, she was single, had no kids and lived with a hairdresser.
They made some inquiries and the feedback shocked them: these supposedly traditional women had no problems with Gillard’s marital status, envied her freedom from the responsibilities of raising children and, most of all, were in awe of her for choosing a hairdresser for a partner![23]
IN JUNE 2010, in the week she became prime minister, Julia Gillard presided over a 14 per cent increase in her party’s vote, with Labor’s two-party preferred vote rising to 55 per cent to the Coalition’s 45 per cent. Julia Gillard was preferred as prime minister by 55 per cent of Australians against the 34 per cent who preferred Tony Abbott.[24]
Even more striking, as Barrie Cassidy has pointed out, was the stunning turnaround in the leader’s satisfaction rating. Kevin Rudd’s rating when he was deposed had been -19. Within a week of becoming prime minister, Julia Gillard’s satisfaction rating was +19, a 38 per cent turnaround.[25]
It is difficult to remember back two years ago to Julia Gillard’s rock star status. She was popular – even adored – and there was no doubt she was on track to lead Labor to a stunning electoral victory.
And then there were the leaks.
During the election campaign several extremely damaging leaks, put into the public domain by journalist Laurie Oakes, alleged that in Cabinet before the leadership change Gillard had opposed both the paid parental leave scheme and increases to the aged pension.
Nothing could have been more calculated to wound her politically.
She – the childless woman – stood accused of not caring about families with children (paid parental leave) and of being a heartless person who was against fairness for pensioners.
As the following table shows, Gillard’s popularity dropped almost 20 points virtually overnight following the leak on 27 July about her supposedly not supporting the paid parental leave scheme, and – as we all know – the government’s standing was damaged, its primary vote fell to 38 per cent and it was unable to gain a parliamentary majority in order to govern.
Gillard has never recovered from this.[26]
Her personal popularity has remained low even while the government’s standing has started to improve.
And she never will be able to recover while a similarly brutal and targeted campaign of vilification is still being conducted against her. In 2010 it was Kevin Rudd, or his agent, who successfully struck at her credibility and her authority with those cruelly targeted leaks.[27] In 2012, in addition to the continuing attacks on her by the Rudd camp (where she is routinely referred to as “bitch” by some of her parliamentary colleagues), it is also anyone who forwards a viral email, or “likes” or “shares” or adds to a sexist comment on FaceBook, who Retweets a crude comment, or engages in casual conversations where the country’s leader is dismissed as a “lying bitch”.
It is time to stop. To draw a line.
My purpose in deciding to explore these things today was not to titillate, and it was certainly not to give satisfaction to the people who are responsible for producing this awful material.
Some people counseled me not to show it. Ignore it, delete it, don’t reinforce it, I was told. I disagree.
I think that by shining a light on what is out there, on the ways in which our country’s leader is being demeaned and destabilized, and our country and its population is degrading itself, we might be able to shame the more decent among us into not going along with it any more.
We have to do this because I am alarmed that we have created a climate of misogyny that is widespread and contagious. It taints all of us, makes all women vulnerable and it is likely to act as a deterrent to young women thinking about a career in politics. Why would anyone want to step up for such treatment?
I did take the advice to the extent that I have cut back on what I showed today but I am including many more examples in an R-rated Appendix to this talk which will be available on my website in coming days.
I was very impressed earlier this week when Helen Szoke, the Race Discrimination Commissioner, unveiled a strategy to end racism in this country: “Racism: it stops with me”.
Simple yet effective.
I would like today for we shareholders in Australia Pty Ltd. to make a similar commitment: The persecution of our prime minister: it stops with me.
So next time you get one of those emails, don’t delete it – send it back to whoever sent it to you and tell them: It stops with me. When someone in your company refers to the prime minister disrespectfully, don’t ignore it – tell them off: it stops with me. And if you stumble across a website or a FaceBook page that contains offensive commentary or images, don’t avert your eyes – make a comment calmly saying how sad this makes you feel: it stops with me.
This is something that is beyond party, beyond political affiliation, beyond voting intention and beyond whether or not you like Julia Gillard. We should all be worried about this vilification of our first female prime minister. I think the same thing would happen if she were from the Liberal Party. Indeed Julie Bishop, the deputy leader of the Opposition has told me that she is constantly attacked for being childless.
So it does not matter whether you are Labor or Liberal, National Party or Green, whether you admired Julia Gillard or you despise her, whether you intend to vote for her or against her.
If enough of us push back, perhaps we can stop it. And if we can, perhaps that will help restore some dignity and respect to the holder of our highest office.
We would be a better place if we could.
Note of thanks. I would like to acknowledge and thank the following people who helped me in various ways in the preparation of this speech: Commissioner Elizabeth Broderick, Rodney Cavalier, Anne Cooper, Kay Dee, Georgia Fullerton, Jeff Mueller, Elizabeth Raper, Barbara Riley-Smith, Chris Ronalds SC, Janet Wilson (and several members of parliament who preferred their names not be made public).
[3] http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;db=CHAMBER;id=chamber%2Fhansardr%2F2d5112d9-d29f-4121-aa4c-332814189972%2F0024;query=Id%3A%22chamber%2Fhansardr%2F2d5112d9-d29f-4121-aa4c-332814189972%2F0018%22
[10] http://www.news.com.au/top-stories/barren-gillard-unfit-to-be-pm/story-e6frfkp9-1111113448384#ixzz248ixawJX
[11] Joe Kelly, “Mark Latham says Julia Gillard Has No Empathy Because She Has No Children”. The Australian 4 April, 2011
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/mark-latham-says-julia-gillard-has-no-empathy-because-shes-childless/story-fn59niix-1226033174177 Accessed 23 August, 2012
[12] Malcolm Farr, “Tony Abbott tells Julia Gillard to ‘make an honest woman of herself’ on carbon tax” Herald Sun 25 February, 2011
http://www.news.com.au/national-old/tony-abbott-tells-julia-gillard-to-make-an-honest-womanof-herself-on-carbon-tax/story-e6frfkvr-1226012034629 Accessed 1 September 2012
[13] Peter van Onselen, “Backbench push for survival fuels leadership noise” Weekend Australian 21-22 July 2012 p. 13
[14] Melissa Mack, “’Old cow’ insult for PM Gillard” InDaily 3 August, 2012
http://www.indaily.com.au/?xml=mob&iid=66169#folio=1 Accessed 23 August, 2012
[17] For example, see the definition of “sexual harassment” published by the Australian Human Rights Commission: http://www.hreoc.gov.au/sexualharassment/index.html.
[19] Karl Quinn, “Defiant Pickering says he’s not finished with PM yet”. Smh.com.au 24 August, 2012 http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/defiant-pickering-says-hes-not-finished-with-pm-yet-20120823-24p11.html Accessed 26 August 2012
[20] http://www.comcare.gov.au/safety__and__prevention/health_and_safety_topics/bullying/Comcares_workplace_bullying_campaign
[21] http://www.aph.gov.au/parliamentary_business/committees/house_of_representatives_committees?url=ee/bullying/tor.htm
[22] See, for example, Damian O’Keefe v Williams Muir’s Pty Limited t/a Troy Williams The Good Guys [2011] FWA 5311 and Dover-Ray v Real Insurance Pty Ltd (2010) 204 IR 399; [2010] FWA 8544
[23] Anne Summers “It is Gillard’s ability to connect with, surprise and delight a wide range of people that is her ace card” The Age 26 June, 2010 Insight. P. 3
[24] Phillip Coorey, “Gillard Saves Labor” Sydney Morning Herald 26 June 2010
http://www.smh.com.au/national/gillard-saves-labor-20100625-z9qy.html?autostart=1%22>first Accessed 30 August 2012
[25] Barrie Cassidy The Party Thieves. The Real Story of the 2010 Election Melbourne University Press, 2010 p. 147
[26] Table first appeared in crikey.com.au
http://media.crikey.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/arthur.jpg
[...] Her Rights at Work (R-rated) » The Looking Glass [...]
[...] the PM cops just because she is a woman, read this lecture by writer and journalist Anne Summers: Her Rights at Work – it is powerful in it’s truth and shows just how much bullshit the Prime Minister gets thrown [...]
[...] recently Summers has returned to media prominence as an opponent of the ‘political persecution of Australia’s first female prime minister’. She complains that ‘sexist and discriminatory treatment’ (including use of the epithet [...]
[...] Through my online life I have discovered a whole bunch of role models who (unknowingly until now) have been slowly teaching me and showing me the way. @JaneCaro @corinne_grant @wendy_harmer @ERN_Malleyscrub @benpobjie @caitlinmoran @leighsales @rglover702 @AnitaHeiss @HelenRazer @stellajyoung as well as articles like these: http://thehoopla.com.au/corinne-grant-vagina-dialogues/, http://captainturtle.blogspot.com.au/?spref=tw, http://annesummers.com.au/speeches/her-rights-at-work-r-rated/ and http://www.dailylife.com.au/news-and-views/dl-opinion/playing-the-sexism-carda-guide-for-politicians-20121010-27cxp.html. [...]
[...] http://annesummers.com.au/speeches/her-rights-at-work-r-rated/ [...]
[...] Misogyny Speech went viral, feminist author and journalist Anne Summers made her ‘Newcastle Speech’, arguing that the extreme sexist and discriminatory abuse Gillard was subjected to [...]
[...] “chosen the harlot’s prerogative”. Some more blatantly offensive examples are catalogued here. As to whether Abbott and the Liberals have participated in this sexism… well, Gillard has [...]
[...] Her Rights at Work (R-rated version): The Political Persecution of Australia’s First Female Prime … [...]
I admit to being a Labor supporter.
There are a couple of things that do bother me about this article though, though to be fair.
If Laurie Oakes reported honestly and accurately:
“…journalist Laurie Oakes, alleged that in Cabinet before the leadership change Gillard had opposed both the paid parental leave scheme and increases to the aged pension.”
then that is indeed newsworthy. I would want to know this about any Labor Prime Minister. It SHOULD be headline news. If it is dishonest and inaccurate then this is a blight on the standards of Laurie Oakes, who for the most part is a rational jounalist.
Also, to be fair, the criticisms of headlines referring to “Julia” need to be tied down, lest they float away. One of my heroes E G Whitlam, often was referred to as Gough, to be sure, in headline articles. It relates more to the uniquenesss of the name, or the name and its uniqueness to the position, thus rendering the christian name synonymous with the role. I would instantly recognise the headline containing the word “Gough” as the Right Honorable E G Whitlam, as I would “Julia” with Julia Gillard. Trivial really.
For the most part I support the article, except to say that the stuff commented on would never have seen the light of day, for most Australians. You actually need to seek this jizz out, so the 500-600 comments that appear on these abberent web sites are probably the same 500-600 morons across all the sites. It speaks volumes for the way that the media has been diluted by internet. Even the once voluminously anti Gillard, vitriolic “Australian” newspaper is now but a squeaky voice in the background of a rising cacophony.
I think it is important to reflect deeply about the key issues that Anne Summers raises in her excellent speech..
The vitriole from the extreme right against PM Gillard is what we used to say is well “beyond the pale”. Surely, we should be able to have sensible political debate in this country without the demeaning, ignorant, immature, depraved and vile lack of respect for people that we have seen directed against Julia Gillard.
Having said that, I believe that we need to examine her leadership in the area of political policies and practice and not just view it in the light of the levels of abuse that have been heaped on her by the extreme and misogynist right wing.
I am a person who has a lot of differences with the PM, whom I consider to be quite conservative, but certainly not as reactive as Tony Abbott..
I personally think she listens far too much to US leaders, which caused great embarassment when she recently tried to force the ALP Caucus to vote with the US and Israel on the question of allowing observer status to the Palestine state in the UN. As it turned out, Caucus wanted Australia to abstain and got its way. Australia should have voted for recognition for the reason that approximately 60% of Australians in polls consistently believe that this should have occurred. When one looks at the history of the way the state of Israel was founded (through terrorism) and how it has been occupying Palestinian land against all peace agreements, its inhumane blockade of Gaza, its apartheid wall, the numerous checkpoints that disrupt Palestinan daily life etc, we should have vote for recognition. PM Gillard listened to Hilary Clinton when sh should have been listening to her own people.
It goes without saying that the Liberal/National Party Coalition tried to demonise the government because it did not vote the way the US wanted!
The ALP government also supports US policy on the situation in West Papua where the Indonesian military (TNI) is carrying out genocide as it did in East Timor, Acheh and some parts of Indonesia itself. The US intervened in the early 1960s to stop the Dutch government giving independence to West Papua because of its great mineral wealth. This year represents 50 years of military terror that the West Papuans have suffered as US mining corporations make huge profits out of theri gold, copper and other resources.
Similarly, neither the US of the Australian governments (or their oppositions for that matter) will lift a finger to raise the question of human rights abuses committed by the Indonesian military in the UN and to work for an international tribunal to bring the criminals to justice. It seemed to be necessary for the Nazi war criminals at the end of World War 2 and those who committed unspeakable crimes against humanity in the old Yugoslavia and Rawanda. However, the TNI can continue to happily murder the peoples it controls with impunity without a squeak of protest from western politicians who claim to value human rights and democracy.
Even PM Gillard’s insistence on having the NAPLAN testing which most educationists oppose is something that came from very right wing educational theorists in the US.
The Howard government withdrew from the Law of the Sea Convention when Timor-Leste, the poorest country in our region, so that it could force its new government to cede areas of oil and gas deposits in its half of the sea to Australia, the richest country in the region. The ALP governments have done nothing to reverse this shameful situation.
Her government’s policy on asylum seekers differs little from the inhumane policies of the Howard government.
Sadly, PM Gillard declines to show any leadership at all in the area of human rights.
Her attitude to gay marriage is quite reactionary and is the same as the opposition.
Despite a lot of the sound and thunder we hear about the ALP Fair Work Acy, it still containe some aspects of the hated Work Choices policies of John Howard, which, by the way, saw him lose the 2007 election and his seat.
However, despite these criticisms, under the leadership of Rudd and Gillard, Australia has achieved:
* substantial increases in pensions
* paid parental leave
* the signing of the Kyoto Protocol and a greenhouse tax, which despite the loud protests of those in the polluting industries is a way forward to doing something necessary for the future health of the planet
[I know many have argued that this was a broken promise of the part of the PM, however, she did not gain a sufficient majority and had to go with the Greens on this one. John Howard for lied about the GST, but did not have to endure the same levels of vile abuse that Julia Gillard has received. And he had a comfortable majority to do as he promised]
* abolition of the unfair and anachronistic Australian Building & Construction Commission which was using its powers in a way to affect the health and safety of construction workers
* apologised to the Stolen Generation and to those, who as children, were abused in state institutions
* has kept Australia out of recession despite the global financial crisis
So,despite my criticisms of her, I still consider she is a more worthy leader that Tony Abbott who seems to lack a policy on almost every important issue and can only be negative and demeaning.
Let us have political debate about political issues in a way that is respectful of those who hold differing positions
Well said. Australia has aligned itself too closely to the US.
It is a sad indictment on our political system that our leaders think they have to resort to personal attacks and incitement of public anger to pursue their interests. I fear for our country’s future if this is the standard of our thinking.
I’m over all politicians. No-one wants to make the hard decisions because they’re worried about what the poll results will be.
Let Governments govern, then in 3 years if we don’t like it, democratically we vote them out.
I’m ashamed of the way Australian politicians from either party – and media, make it a point of targeting strong women in Politics.
My reaction all along has been with disgust at the treatment of this woman. I have yet to vote Labor, but they are doing something positive for climate change, that is not the stuff of lies!Now, sadly the herd mentality is a hard one to crack when it has had its mind made up for it – it is why Catholics are of that persuasion, not because they thought it out for themselves, they were brought up that way and the media – Pickering – play a big role today in feeding ignorant people misinformation.
Joe Hockey has egg on his fat face re speech in UK defending the poor, only to vote away from that at home.
Will Abbott be called a liar about his knowledge of the Slipper/Brough affair??
I think Abbott is the most base person ever to step into such a senior role in politics and should be treated with contempt.
Wonderful article and extremely enlightening.
I hope I live long enough to see you Australians vote in an Aboriginal WOMAN Prime Minister! Then the world will know that Australia has really grown up!
Wow! That was one VERY enlightening speech – and absolutely wonderful to read. It should be published in every school newsletter in your country! I have only heard your PM speak on snippets of international news reports and I must admit, with a sense of guilt now, that I was not impressed. However, I think that mainly was due to her the tone of her voice grating on my nerves! I have also heard Abbot speak and he came across to me immediately as the quintessential sleazy slimebag. The closest example would be the stereotypical used-car salesman! Definitely NOT someone I would vote for . . .
Speaking as an outsider, I really hope I live long enough to see Australians elect their first Aboriginal Woman Prime Minister. When that happens, political Australia will have grown to true adulthood – at last!
Anne, can you please at least be honest with the readers as to your writing bias. Everyone knows Andrew Bolt is conservitive, but you have neglegted to say you used to work for Paul Keating. A simple truth that helps people understand why you are writing an article to defend a labor politician.
Ian, please see About Anne Summers on this website. Your breathtaking ability to miss the completely obvious and then draw exactly the wrong conclusions from that is equalled only by your deep, deep need for a spellchecker.
[...] Prime Minister of Australia recently spoke out against an online “sexist smear campaign” against her, but cyber abuse is unfortunately not limited to victims with a public profile (no [...]
While it true that PM Gillard has endured a lot of abuse she, and her ministers, are more than willing to dish it out with compound interest.
Just this year, quoting from Hansard, PM Gillard and her cabinet have called Tony Abbott:
“A dog. An aggressive, carping, bitter, mindless, deceptive, dodgy, mendacious, rancid, negative, nasty, muck-raking, untruthful, obstructionist, opportunistic, sexist, political Neanderthal. He is unfit for high office. He cannot control his temper. No trick is too low for him. No stunt is too wild. He is a bully. A thug. A snake oil salesman. A poster child for vile bully-boy values. He has repulsive double standards. He hates women. He stands for nothing. He has unhealthy obsessions. He is nuts. Abbott behaves like Jack the Ripper.He is Gina Rinehart’s butler. He is a douchebag.”
Julia Gillard is a union lawyer who is quite happy to mix it up with the opposition at the lowest possible level. I would be sympathetic to our PM if she behaved with civility to her political opponents.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/abbott-suffering-a-labor-party-stoning-20121014-27krw.html#ixzz2E40IVx2u,
I’ve decided to use the word ‘magnificent’ to describe our Prime Minister Julia Gillard. She has negotiated a democratically elected hung parliament and demonstrated how it is totally workable by putting in place the foundation stones of important policies which will benefit all Australians in the future. What an impressive person. There are very few people who could maintain such a passionate, intelligent focus as the main stream media and Coalition and other ratbags combined to relentlessly attack the person. Couldn’t attack the policies because they are all good. Can’t wait to vote this wonderful woman back into government to lead our country.
Anne, I read down as far as when you said howard bought in the GST,don’t misconstrue the facts, Howard took this to an election and acquired a mandate.
The truth is Gillard didn’t have a mandate, report the truth, I found it not in my interest to read any further.
Angus, you need to get it right. Howard said “read my lips – no GST”.
Oh, and he also said that all new apprentices would get a new tool box.
Actually Lucille, John Howard said “read my lips – no GST” before the 1996 election. He then intorduced the GST to the electorate before the 1998 election, which the liberals won (although their 2 party preferred vote was less)
Actually Jim, John Howard said he would never, ever introduce a GST. Spin that anyway you want, it was a lie – regardless of whether he changed his mind or got reelected, he had promised to NEVER, EVER introduce a GST.
As for mandates, where are they defined in the constitution? If it’s just a matter of whoever is PM has a mandate then Tony should stop mindless opposition and work with the government of the day for a change. But I suspect there will be some tortured justification by those on the right of why John had a mandate but Gillard does not.
Angus, seeing as you define “a mandate” as being had by a government that lost the popular vote and only achieved a majority on preferences and then had to do a deal with the Democrats because it didn’t have a majority in the senate, you no doubt agree that the Australian people gave Julia Gillard a mandate to do anything she pleases.
When it comes to remembering, let alone reporting, the truth, you have long way to go.
[...] Through my online life I have discovered a whole bunch of role models who (unknowingly until now) have been slowly teaching me and showing me the way. @JaneCaro @corinne_grant @wendy_harmer @ERN_Malleyscrub @benpobjie @caitlinmoran @leighsales @rglover702 @AnitaHeiss @HelenRazer @stellajyoung as well as articles like these: http://thehoopla.com.au/corinne-grant-vagina-dialogues/, http://captainturtle.blogspot.com.au/?spref=tw, http://annesummers.com.au/speeches/her-rights-at-work-r-rated/ and http://www.dailylife.com.au/news-and-views/dl-opinion/playing-the-sexism-carda-guide-for-politicians-20121010-27cxp.html. [...]
Hi Anne,
I think you need to write an update on this article. I’ve been trawling the internet to try and find some analysis ANY analysis mainstream or otherwise on what seems to be an orchestrated use of parliamentary privilege by the Liberal party in tandem with The Australian to smear Julia Gillard over the AWU affair. It is absolutely disgusting.
I’m sorry but I do not like seeing the gender card played. I know too many women in high positions who have never had any problems with being female. They have earned respect for doing a fantastic job in the their chosen careers and are admired by all. At the end of the day if the Prime Minister wants to sleep with married men then she will be a slut in my eyes, just like any other woman that I have know that has done the same.
Do you have a similar word for men who sleep with married women, or married men who sleep with other women, or are you playing your own (misogynistic) gender card? Or were you just trying to illustrate the point of the article?
Or how about a term for married men who have relationships with single women? They’re the ones who have a responsibility, who are cheating, but I’ve yet to read any criticism of them.
Two Hoots, what are you on? Who said anything about the PM wanting to sleep with married men?!! As for ‘I do not like seeing the gender card played’ – I’m assuming you disagree with Anti-Discrimination Laws and Equal Opportunity as well. Perhaps you just pop back in your Tardis and go back to 1955, or whatever year in the dark ages of mid 20th Century you feel most comfortable in. Prime Minister Gillard deserves respect for doing a fantastic job with a hung parliament, just like any other politician in her position would receive.
Hi Anne, i had no idea of the extent of the dreadful teatment and sexism to which Julia Gillard is treated. I have however been totally turned off politics by the ‘tone’ of parliament these days to which you have alluded. Thankyou for your research on this issue. I believe that it is a very damning picture of the state of our political process. As parents and as a community we generally try to instill and teach ‘proper behaviour’ to our children so that they may grow up with respect for their fellow human beings. The sort of behaviour being practiced in Canberra by politicians on a daily basis constitutes the very behaviour we warn our children against.
Wow, I dont know what to say? Anne, you have really enlightened me. I had no idea such sexism existed in this country. Has it been this way for very long?
Dr Summers
Thank you. Your speech has identified something I have fought but not been able to identify as a demotivating force in my life.
[...] Unfortunately it wasn’t an elaborate prank, and over the past two years his remarks have kept me fuming. Many of them have been directed at Julia Gillard, Australia’s Prime Minister. He’s said that she’s not an honest woman (politically speaking, of course), she’s not qualified for the job because she’s not a mother, and has given speeches in front of signs saying “Ditch the witch”. Anne Summers has documented in eloquent detail the special kinds of sexist vitriol reserved for Australia’s first female prime minister (http://annesummers.com.au/speeches/her-rights-at-work-r-rated/). [...]
This whole sorry saga gets worse and worse, and I don’t see an end to it. History relates that whenever women have finally had enough that they have felt it necessary to defend themselves, they are labelled as weak, at best, unable to “cut it”.
I have never liked Tony Abbott – or Campbell Newman, for that fact. They both come across to me as extremely arrogant. Their arrogance ripples out from them and poisons everyone they encounter. The mainstream media has played a huge – and adverse – role in these events. The last Queensland election, for example, was election by media, nothing less. The lack of respect shown to Julia Gillard by people not just in politics was reflected in the way Anna Bligh was treated.
Australians seem to have forgotten how extremely lucky they are to enjoy the freedom of speech that they do. Perhaps they should now start learning how to use that freedom wisely before it eventually becomes their downfall.
Thank you, Anne Summers, for this thorough and thoroughly shocking expose of the constant barrage of misogynist attacks on our Prime Minister. Having had the good fortune to work closely to Julia Gillard on occasion I know her to be immensely hard-working and warm and generous in her relations with those around her. I have watched with admiration as she has racked up achievement after achievement and been astounded by her unfailing resilience in the face of so much denigration. We Australians should be proud of our PM. I was particularly proud of her speech to the Parliament, made after you had delivered this address, when she refused to accept the misogynist comments from the Opposition and others, but have found the negative comments on her speech from members of the press unfathomable as well as unacceptable. Perhaps they have seen so much misogyny against the Prime Minister, they have become inured to it.
I agree, the response of all Australians should be: “It stops with me”.
Dianne
Finally someone has pulled it all together! into the streets, women!
Hello, Im 5th generation Australian and I thank you for defining the ugly ocker into a unacceptable behaviour. Thankyou for bringing this issue into sight so my daughters and my sons can learn this is not socially acceptable. Thankyou to the Prime Minister for her courage, so my children can learn strength. Thankyou for raising an issue that so many have denied its existance. Please put me on the petition for a wake up call to all men and women that confrontation is so yesterday…bring on the Edward De Bono 6 Thinking Hats and start thinking parralell with each other.
[...] Pickering. A detailed and shocking article about this sustained attack on Gillard can be found in Anne Summers “Her Right’s at Work” article. Read it and you may be left wondering what had happened to our country to make this level of [...]
How refreshing to have the breezes of truth waft over the mire of political comment.It stops with me – yes it does.
[...] Dr Summers’ website for the full transcript of her speech including images and video [...]
Difficult to argue against this. So nice to see the other side presented
[...] to talk to me about equity in the workplace for women and the focus for her talk was the recent Anne Summers 2012 Human Rights and Social Justice Lecture at the University of Newcastle, August 2012 [...]
I have been aware of the sexist remarks directed to the Prime Minister for a long time but had no idea about the extent of this. Thank you for your informative speech. You are right to say to all of us that we should stop it in its tracks. This I will do from now on. It is wonderful to see men commenting in a positive way to your speech. Happy to know that there are some men out there that get it. Such a shame it is not more.
What must other countries think about Australia and its culture when they see these remarks in print!
Ms Gillard is very very welcome. “Gillard has said that women who were just so happy to see a woman running our country sent her gifts, often jewellery. Gillard said that she always tried to wear these pieces of jewellery at least once, and at an event where she would be photographed, so that the giver could see how much she appreciated the gesture.” It was extremely very kind of her. xxxx
I am appalled at the treatment our PM receives. I can’t imagine any other country treating their P.M’s this way.
Perhaps you might like to write something, along the same lines, about Abbott, or John Howard ? I can assure you there is just as much, if not more insulting and offensive behaviour directed at them, one particular example that comes to mind is the tweet by J Burnside, but what does it matter, after all they are only men !
Thank you Dr Anne Summers for a ‘right on the nail’ speech.
I have only one comment.
It stops with me.
I think you’re looking pretty hard for sexism here. There have been a lot of distasteful things said and emailed about PM’s over the years, Ms Gillard is not Robinson Crusoe in that regard.
Perhaps you could help parliament by writing a guide to criticising a PM (who happens to be female) without resorting to sexism. Its not like this term of parliament has been a 100% success, so there are legitimate grounds for criticism of this government completely unrelated to the gender of any person involved.
I’m so over the word games with the term “liar”. Its not important to me if our national leader fits the textbook definition of “liar” over introducing a tax that the PM and Treasurer unequivocally ruled out before the election. What is important is that I now no longer believe this particular PM when they make a promise. If Howard had of introduced the GST without an electoral mandate I think the criticism would have been even more strident than that directed at our current PM – no sexism required…
Thanks. Great piece. I’ve been aware of the sexism – and from many female journalists too, even on the ABC – but had no idea that there was this sort of stuff about.
I believe Julia Gillard will go down in history as effective, and extremely emotionally resilient. I don’t like all her policies – but now wonder if this concerted intimidation makes it all the harder for her to support a more progressive social agenda.
Many media commentators have opined that the enthusiastic reactions overseas to the misogyny speech directed at Tony Abbott missed the ‘context’. I would like to say that the real context was that the Opposition has been trying since the last election to find any and every weak link in the government. That they found something with Peter Slipper was simply the ‘something’ they found. They would have moved with whatever they had. It happened Slipper used crude sexist language in an email. The Opposition posed as shocked to slam home a blow. In this larger context the PM was quite correct and devastatingly logical in her response. That Abbott (and Pine and the rest of them) have known and at least peripherally participated in this nasty smear campaign demonstrates just how comfortable they are with misogyny.
It’s a shame we don’t pay the same respect to the highest office in the country as the Americans. I think the Prime Minister should be addressed as such, even Madam Prime Minister. Including in this speech. Thankyou for highlighting such an important issue but think Anne you should have also taken the moral high ground on this. But great speech!
[...] I’ve tracked down Summers’ speech.* [...]
Dr. Summers,
I didn’t how bad the attacks were before seeing this site. I am horrified at what has been going on. I am also concerned that Australian teenage girls, once they know what has been going on, will understand that if they aspire to high office in Australia, this is what they too will get. I wonder if this matter could be taken up at an international level? It seems to me that the material glorifying rape and implying violence needs to be addressed legally, and since no-one in this country appears willing to take the matter up, then perhaps the International Court of Justice might look at it? I would like to have your view please.
There is no room for sexism in any forum. But accusing Abbott of Mysogynism (hating women) is a bit rich. Look up the definition. Whilst I do not agree with the sexism thrown around, Julia needs to tone it down. When Abbott rolled his eyes back during one of Julia’s speeches, she accused him of Mysogeny? I am sorry, but it seems that everything is being attirbuted to Abbott’s Mysogynism. Nicola Roxon accused Abbott of having a problem with women because he turnes his back on her at functions? Please, there could be a number of reasons ranging from B.O. right through to disliking her personally (nothing to do with anti women). Portraying Gillard as a victim, and the bastion of feminism takes the focus off the fact that she leads an incompetent government, the worst I can recall since Whitlam. She lied to the electorate regarding the Carbon Tax, end of story. All politicians lie, but the Carbon Tax was going to be such a change in the way we do things and the impact so wide, it should have gone to the polls. Her judgement on Peter Slipper, Craig Thompson, the pokies bill etc. leave a lot to be desired. Before that as Education minister she oversaw the overspending on the Education budget, and her exact involvement with an ex partner who embezzled over half a million dollars in union funds will still see the light of day. There is something wrong with Julia, and it has nothing to do with her sex.
I want to take action against these vile comments against our prime minister and all women. It is unacceptable language and behaviour, I have had enough and feel very angry . what can we do.
Susie
Dear Anne, you will not be surprised that not much has changed – we are still either ‘Damned Whores or God’s Police’.
[...] article noted Anne Summers’ speech available in full her [Worth reading] which identified ‘Ju-liar’ and YouTube [...]
[...] the sphere of lady-stuff, here’s a transcript of a speech given by Anne Summers about the harassment received by the Prime Minister Julia Gillard. It’s pretty long and decidedly NSFW due to language and somewhat offensive images. Did you [...]
Thank you so much for documenting the abuse to which the Australian PM has been subjected, and for your analysis of the reasons why, and for your suggestions that simple action can help (It Stops with Me). The PM’s recent statement of defiance to such misogyny (“I will not be lectured on sexism and misogyny…by this man,” etc.) has been heard, and appreciated, around the world. Emerging into global news via the BBC World Service and elsewhere (CBC As It Happens), on the same day young Malala Yousufzai, the 14 year old Pakistani peace activist, was shot, unites the PM’s demand for basic respect with Malala’s now famous statement that she remained “afraid of no one” in her pursuit of her right to education. May we all take refuge and gather strength, moment by moment, story by story, day by day, in the nearly incomprehensible courage shown by these two women, living their lives, in their local and global contexts. Eileen Condon, Poughkeepsie, New York
[...] as eloquently as others. There are so many great pieces being written (here, here, here and here – the last one is decidedly R Rated so don’t go there if you don’t want to see) [...]
Thankyou Ann, I have been saying for a long time now that all this vindictivness was because the prime minister is a women. It seems to me that Australia has a fair bit of growing up to do, we are so easily manipulated most of us…it amazes me that more people haven’t worked out what is going on…..
At last a clear review of the vile sexism directed at the Prime Minister. If you read only the mainstream press, particularly The Australian, you’d be forgiven for agreeing with the view that this is a feminist beat up. Anne Summers illustrates the depth of this toxic misogyny and a strategy for addressing it – it stops with me.
Thank you Anne for this summation of events. I too was not fully aware of how bad it had gotten.
It stops with me.
Now for my daughter ( who is on maternity leave at present) who works for the Vic Public Service, how does she deal with an ongoing sexual/bullying harrassment case when no one will stand up for her? She joined the union, who said they could not help because it was a ‘preexisting situation’. The two men are still there after harrassing another women onto sick leave and the executives have no interest in persuing the case because it was not put in ‘formal writing’. They are aware of it but will do nothing. When ‘mediation’ was suggested, she turned up, the two men constantly were ‘too busy’. It was ‘voluntary’. So this is what she has to return to.
So not just for women in high positions, but for ALL women, this bullying, sexism, misogyny has to be stopped now and it should begin within the Public Service as a whole ( including way up to PM’s office).
Thank you again.
Thanks Anne, I knew it was bad but am horrified by how bad. The Prime Minister’s ability to keep going in the face of such relentless attacks is remarkable, but it must be at dreadful personal cost to her. I’m volunteering for “it stops with me”, it’s the least we can do. I largely blame Tony Abbott for the tone of political debate, the constant personal attacks, the negativity on all issues; he has done Australia a great disservice. For those who criticise the government’s performance; look at Australia’s economic health and continuing prosperity compared with for all other developed countries, not achieved by accident.
Thank you Anne for collating this appalling information into this wonderful speech. For all those young women who believe that women have equality or they don’t need to be feminists, take heed…attitudes still have a long way to go in this country and discrimination and misogyny are still rife. I was so proud of Australians for voting in a female Prime Minister, but it seems that we have taken a huge slide backwards in attitude and I can only blame the journalists who promote and support them.
Good analysis Anne. It has puzzled me for a long time why, in response to being called a ‘liar’, the PM & her supporters have not reminded everyone of John Howard’s ‘core & non-core promises’. IMO they should should call it for what it is – hypocrisy!
Thankyou Anne for rising up and speaking out on the appalling sexism shown to Prime minister Gillard which insults every woman as well. I have been hoping that academics, social commentators, journalists etc would eventually stand up and speak out about the sexist and misogynistic treatment of her. I am proud of the Primeminister and even more so after her eloquent, articulate, speech in parliament this week. I felt like thousands of women and men around Australia breathed a sigh of relief to hear her justified anger and naming of this behaviour. I’m so glad that your also eloquent, well researched speech preceded it and is paving the way for the community/ culture to begin to shift. I can’t thank you enough.
You have missed a very big point in your speech – when did the hatred start? When Ms Gillard played behind the backs of the Labor party in the ousting of Mr Rudd. It was the fact that Ms Gillard didn’t have the proper decency of confronting Mr Rudd in the morning, but by having it done behind his back the night before that people objected to. Had Ms Gillard done it the correct way in the morning, would she have had such villification? One can’t say for certain, but I do believe it would considerably less and she would have won parliment as a majority and therefore not needed to do deals with which the Australian people were unhappy with.
Having said that, many a great people have villified Ms Gillard due to her sex, I was once forced out of a job for being in an unmarried relationship and the language used towards me was base – I was even accused of being the spawn of the devil himself. I have also been forced out of another job for being white and single (this person assulted students and now heads an institute without any formal ramifications). Let us keep to the facts and leave gender out of it – too many small minded people will end up suffocating Australia in terms of its growth and its image in the world arena.
PS One more thing to add about Labor – Australia was due to have a net debt of 0% by 2014 at the latest, under the current Labor government, it will be another 20 years before this can happen.
Anne, as a man living in Australia, thank you so much for your detailed analysis of what has been happening in this ‘democratic’ country; how this could be taking in the 21st century beggars belief. In the last two years I have thought this is what it must have been like in 1930s Germany as Hitler was on the rise – and no one was standing up to him. Now at long last its beginning to happen, I only hope its not too late.
Anne, I want to thank you sincerely. Reading your speech last Monday for me, was like the lifting of a veil.
The events of the last week have drawn my attention to your speech and I write to thank you for bring together such overwhelming evidence of the truely appalling treatment of the Prime Minister. In the 40+ years since I joined the workforce much has changed, unfortunately some things have not. I had hoped that once we were over the novelty of a female PM, things would settle down. However, when Laurie Oakes took such obvious relish in dropping his bombshell at the National Press Club (in the second week of the election campaign) and the media, commentariat and shock-jocks went “feral” I realised that if there was a rule book it had been thrown out the window. As you have demonstrated there is no depth that will not be explored when it comes to vilifying the PM. While I am not surprised that there so many male troglodytes “out there”, I remain amazed by the vitriol that Julia Gillard seems to attract from so many women, particularly older women?
I have wondered at the demise of our women leaders in politics and thank you for showing how the degradation occurs and has been occurring for our Prime Minister. Instead of being proud to have an woman prime minister she is being subjected to the kind of harassment that has been and is obviously continues to be used to keep women and girls in submissive and inferior positions. Thank you for clarifying what is happening.
It all starts with rudeness indicating contempt of women as shown by the men on Tony Jones Q&A program when Lindsay Tanner, Chris Pyne and Piers Akerman constantly interrupted and spoke over Minister Kate Ellis.
Rudeness is followed by verbal abuse (Alan Jones type)and then to physical abuse, suicides of both women and men, and to domestic violence , rape and even murder. These behaviours are often seen as justified in the courts as a result of provocation.
It must STOP now.
Australia prides itself as an affluent first world country, yet all the discriminatory subtle and overt behaviour towards women, as in the case of our Prime Minister, as well as migrants, who helped build this country to what it is today, actually shows how backwards and stuck in the past this country really is. The Liberal leader’s character and low tactics are unacceptable for anyone with half a brain. It is hard to believe that many are being swayed towards Tony Abbot as a leader due to the brainwashing campaign to disrespect our Prime Minister based on her gender. Just about every politician, male Prime Ministers and presidents throughout the world have gone backwards in their electoral promises. That IS what politicians do, their unfortunate trade mark… The Honorable Prime Minister, Ms. Julia Gillard is no different. Third world countries who are fortunate enough to have great women representing their people and countries internationally, value and respect their female head of Government, regardless of whether they agree or not with their policies and decisions. Thank you so much, Anne Summers, for your brilliant article. I hope it exposes the abhorrent and offensive attack on our Prime Minister and helps the public wake up and re-examine their values.
Great article getting to the heart of the matter. I have always been impressed by Ms Gillards down to earth manner and dedication to her work. It is apparent to me that she has the best interests of Australians at heart. It is unfortunate that some lack the capacity to appreciate her contribution…
Brilliant article. Anne Summers Laying it out clearly for all to understand. Attack the policy, fine. Disagree vehemently, no problem. Personal abuse, discrimination, harassment of this type is abhorrent and must be condemned. I had not seen many of the vile images contained above or visited any of the abysmal sites listed, but now that I am aware of the extent of the abuse I believe I can inform others who deny it is happening.
[...] delivered a speech in August that gives a sense of the broader landscape. I’m linking to the R-rated transcript of the speech. I hope you find the images offensive; we all should be offended. Thank you Prime Minister Gillard [...]
Ann you are not better if you put the pics of Julia here yes I dislike the PM but I would never put the pics anywhere or tell somebody to go have a look.
It was Bob Brown who first spoke out about the sexist abuse inflicted upon the PM. It’s taken women a lot longer to stand up and condemn the offensive behaviour. It’s clearly a political campaign to destablise the Labour Government, lead by Libs No. 1 headkicker, boofhead Abbott & his shock jock mates. Mr. Abbott was also responsible for the persecution of Pauline Hanson. His aggressive bullying chauvinistics behaviour has been obvious for decades yet he came so close to being the leader of this country. The women who voted for him should hang their heads in shame!
Thank You Ann for your article, we are still trying to fight the good fight, still a bit like “pushing the proverbial up hill” I am so glad you exposed the full extent of the sexist hatred. It is just truly sickening and desperately sad. I am an older woman and get accused by my family of being a bit behind the times but the swear words used by young people to describe their peers seems just the thin end of the wedge for me. I’m not a prude and do drop the odd expletive occasionally but this personal slating seems to be getting out of hand.Why so much hatred in a country so well off and with such great potential is beyond me.
I believe we should have a ‘kindness’or perhaps a ‘courtesy’ revolution.(perhaps that’s just a bit too simplistic!) anyway I think “It stops with me” is a damned good start.
As a young public servant and later a union office holder, I had to put up with amazing (to me) and unpleasant denigration, but the style was benign when compared to the language and insults applied to the PM. They should NEVER be tolerated in any civilised society and go way beyond the level of customary teasing which Australians are prone to. I’d love to say it has to stop, but apart from voicing my concern on websites such as Destroy the Joint, I feel powerless. Maybe numbers will help, but I think we have to band together, not only speaking out but using all legitimate tactics, from boycotting certain publications and radio or TV and also making our views known to advertisers. And as for Tony Abbott’s usual form in parliament, defending his consistent misogyny and yes, vilification, is impossible.
I enjoyed the interview with Leigh Sales and Penny Wong, when Penny suggested to Leigh that all professional women can relate to sexism in the workplace. I would really like to see professional women supporting each other on this issue. It cuts across all political lines and is really necessary.
It doesn’t matter what Tony Abbott says, women know what his attitudes are. Women know sexism and hatred when they see it, after all, their lives often depend on it. The most dangerous place for a woman in Australia is still her own home. This sort of thuggery is what a lot of women experience at home and in their daily lives. Here is an opportunity for debate and maybe for change.
Thank you very much. I was also not aware of the depth of the denigration of our Prime Minister. I am a great admirer of PM Gillard and have been impressed by her determination and composure in the face of the negativity and rudeness I have observed occurring. That it was so much worse only increases this admiration.
Anne
under the banner of new journalism and from the House cynic at New Matilda this.. http://newmatilda.com/2012/10/11/greatest-victim-them-all see also comments.
and while humour can be used to create revolutions and ridicule potential despots (see Romney Style on You Tube) it is also used in this case as rather snide wink wink to the sexism. Liar? try Howard and the Tampa affair.
I will send you speech with your permission to my journo networks globally.
BTW for those who make comments about third world countries.. many of them have women leaders. In Laos where I live, we have a national holiday for IWD and men are expected to take over all tasks on that day while women go out and eat in roadside fooderies and drink whiskey. on non IWD day men and women share tasks equally, including childcare. Its not perfect but its better than Australia.Look at the number of senior women in Indonesia.. columnists (eg Julia Suryakusuma http://www.juliasuryakusuma.com/column.php?menu_id=1) and the number of women bankers, engineers, politicians (Madame Yingluck Shinawatra in Thailand) women in senior positions as professionals and in business and please refrain from making ill informed comments.
The situation in Australian politics, and probably in most other Western countries and society in general is the absolute lack of respect, and you have revealed overwhelming evidence here. I recently met with a refugee Congolese family who settled here 3 years ago. The 4 daughters when asked what they noticed as the most different aspect of daily life, was unanimously “lack of respect”.. of elders, and authority in general.
I AM APPROACHING 70 YEARS OLD AND IN MY TIME AND REFLECTING BACK ON HOW THINGS WERE FOR WOMEN, I CAN TELL YOU PLAINLY THAT YOU WOULD NOT WANT IT TO GET BACK TO THE WAY THINGS WERE. I CALL THESE MEN, USING AS MUCH DIGNITY AS I CAN. ‘RENAISSANCE MEN’ THEY LIVED IN A TIME WHEN THE BALANCE TOWARDS MEN WAS OVERWHELMINGLY OVERSTATED AND BELIEVE ME GIRLS YOU DON’T WANT IT TO EVER GET BACK TO THAT. LISTENING TO OUR PRIME MINISTER SPEAK IN PARLIAMENT ON OCTOBER 10 2012 GAVE ME A SURGE OF EXCITEMENT THAT THINGS MAY FINALLY CHANGE FOR THE BETTER . IT GAVE HOPE FOR ALL OUR FEMALE HOPEFULS TO AT LAST HAVE SOME KIND OF EQUALITY, THERE CERTAINLY HAS NOT BEEN MUCH OF THAT COMING FROM MOST OF THE POLITICIANS THE WHOLE TIME JULIA GILLARD HAS BEEN IN POWER. MAYBE THERE ARE ‘RENAISSANCE WOMEN’ TOO, WHAT DO YOU THINK.
Thank you Anne for an excellent exposition of sexism and misogyny in this country. It was wonderful to hear our female Prime Minister Julia Gillard responding at last to the primitive male behaviours to which she has been subjected. Every University and every high school should make this criticism to all students.
After all we stopped tolerating anti-semitic jokes about 30-40 years ago.
It’s time we stopped tolerating sexist remarks in all media and workplaces (which includes Parliament–both federal and state)
Members of Women’s Electoral Lobby are appalled at the disgusting remarks. We want more female politicians to stand up for our rights and needs of both women and men. Such behaviour must not be allowed to discourage our future female leaders.
Oh Anne, thank you for this sensible and cutting analysis of the appalling treatment of the PM. I am at times almost nauseated by the way in which the office of PM is denigrated by the horrific commentary about her. I am taking a stand and stopping it here, from now on.
How does she cope with this? If her response is reflected in her incredible 15 minute speech in parliament the other day, then she is an amazing woman.
When Australia re-elected John Howard the last time, I felt out of touch with Australians and made initial investigations to migrate to NZ. I feel that way again.
Thank you again for your essay.
I am 87 years old. I knew there was some ‘nasty stuff’ out there, and some very malicious treatment of our Prime Minister, but until I read Anne’s speech I did not realise the full revolting extent. How can people think like this, with such hatred and venom? What has become of our decency and our much vaunted ‘fair go’? I can remember as a child being impressed by the pride with which my parents went off to vote each election day; dressed in their best, exercising their right and their responsibility. They were not always happy with the outcome, but they appreciated the democratic process in Australia.
I remember as a teenager picking up a common denigration before the war of Bob Menzies as ‘pig-iron Bob’ (selling iron to Japan, when war seemed possible)…my father chided me, and said I should not so degrade the position of Prime Minister. How low we have sunk since then…
Forty years ago I was a Teacher-Librarian in a government high school; at the request of the History subject mistress, I bought the just-published and much acclaimed ‘Damn Whores and God’s Police’ for the library. The Boss asked me to come to his office; there had been a complaint from a mother regarding the library’s having a book with such a title on its shelves… I was appalled by his ignorance, but had to be polite: it is a respected scholastic work, it tells the virtually untold story of the first women in Australia, convict and free.. In the end we reached a compromise; morals campaigner Ronah Joyner was vocal at the time, he was scared; I would put the book on the shelf, in my office, for teacher reference… The silence about women in Australia has continued; perhaps our gutsy Prime Minister has started to really open the story up. C0ngratulations to Anne Summers.
Excellent summary of the ingrained sexism that still exists in our society. Calling people on discriminatory behaviour can be hard but it is an inherent obligation of every citizen to speak out against it whenever and wherever they can. The Hon. Julia Gilliard PM is the leader of this country and is entitled to be treated with respect and dignity.
It is such a relief to *finally* see that this repulsive undercurrent is being addressed. Well done. The culture of turning a blind eye to sexism in this country has to be exposed now.
Lastly, I believe that if a person of color identifies a comment as racist and offensive (to them
Personally) then everyone else should of course simply accept it.
The same should go for any women, to identify and speak up about being offended is not an easy thing to do in this country. It should be simply accepted by everyone, other women, but especially by the people who will never ever relate or experience this…by our men.
I am so relieved to read this lecture.
Thank you for the wake up call, thank you for your research and thank you for forcing this onto the public agenda.
Thank you Anne. I feel so sick in the stomach! So ashamed of the humans in this country to allow and accept this situation in our culture. I am ashamed to be Australian! I notice how few men are commenting on this issue here. Thank you Prime Minister Gillard for putting yourself out there and taking this crap.
Thank you for this presentation. I hope that your talk, and Julia’s (I say it fondly) brilliant disquisition on misogyny in the Opposition Leader, start to have effect.
I am now nearly 70 but being raised in pubs – I grew up on the sort of disabling misogyny and sexism that is nowadays on Fb and other social media. I therefore say that social media is really only bringing out what was already there. In parliament, perhaps, it is populism gone mad but, perhaps we should be thankful because, once we can see the problem writ large, there may be the possibility of doing something about it. It was always there I suggest, it’s the level of potential visibility that has changed.
I won’t tolerate it either, I may even send them this link.
Sexist ? You seriously think that is the problem?
Absurd policies and $250Billion on the government credit card might be whats behind the resentment.
Did you even read the whole article Lleuad Ci?
It has constantly been a souce of offence to me that Prime Minister Gillard is constantly addressed and referred to as ‘Julia’. i think you make a a very important point . its a very subtle form of sexism which diminishes her position as an adult woman with legitimate power and shows an absence of basic respect.
i have also been told stories by friends shocked and confronted by sales staff in shops making unwelcomed comments about Gillard as ‘that bitch ‘ or worse.
I find the climate of hatred very disturbing and in particular the label which has stuck – that of Liar . its the kind of Victorian admonishment said to a naughty child by a critical disaproving parent and i think that is why it has stuck – ie ‘Julia is a very bad girl and must be very ashamed of her self ‘ , perhaps for daring to speak out and daring to have her own mind – this is the kind of suppression that women have endured for centuries – its nothing knew , its just hijacked as political rhetoric designed to undermine Gillards legitimate adult power and deride her character .
Actually I think the reference to using the PM’s first name is one of the few things in this article that misses the mark.
Since I have been in Australia we have had Bob, “little Johnny” (although not from his friends) and Kev/Kevin. True Keating was an exception – but I always this was a dig at him being a bit stuck-up rather than deference. I don’t see anything sexist about “Julia”.
Good speech Anne. Misogyny is obviously alive and well in 2012 and the need for feminism and women’s liberation is by no means over.
Thank you for your excellent article. I also was not aware of the extent to which these kind of attacks were being made. During the election in which Obama was elected I admired the conduct of John McCain who never descended to race politics (although others may have). Apparently the opposition in Australian is incapable of behaving with anywhere near as much honour. The right in Australia has become so ugly, sexist, racist, anti-science, paroniod and just plain mean. What are thier policies – no clue – I only ever hear this rubbish. I will be devastated if they are elected on the basis of this behaviour.
Well said Anne, I am constantly mortified at the way our Prime Minister is openly disrespected and speak to my children about how wrong it is and if they would like to ever be treated like that. It is actually sad that our children have a better grasp of taking the moral high ground and showing basic respect than most of our elected officials.
Ad hominem arguments are weak arguments, and just says more about them than it does about the person the insults are aimed at.
Thank you Anne for this great exposé. I had absolutely no idea of the extent to which Julia Gillard and other female MPs are subjected to sexist and insulting comments, behaviours and attacks. I am deeply ashamed of my fellow Australians. I am very surprised and disgusted at the suppression of the Larry Pickering cartoons and emails by the Gallery and general media and cannot understand why they were never made public. Were they not sent to female MPs as well? Didn’t their staff consider making this public?This will stop with me.
Thank you Anne. It is essential for Australia to have a dignified Government, with statesmen quality members as our leaders. The lack of dignity and decorum displayed in Parliament sets an appalling standard for all Australians which unhappily includes our school rooms where our next generation learn from the shocking displays performed in Parliament.
Our Prime Minister must be treated with respect and common courtesy, both for the residents progress in the world but also for Australia to gain respect from other countries.
When a gender based attack on the PM is launched it affects all Australians and encourages the rent a mob type masses to ignore the high standard of living we enjoy and erode the freedom we live with.
Our female PM has achieved more in her short period in that role, than the disillusioned and pathetic present Liberal leader Abbott, will ever meet in his life.
Clearly we are becoming a shameless country with some shameless politicians at the helm. What a disgraceful display of hatred for Women. Enough is Enough! From now on “It will definitely STOP WITH ME”, I will no longer tolerate this illegal, offensive, discriminatory, and sexist crude behavior in our society. Our offending public figures need to GROW-UP and leap into the civilized 21st Century. I simply cannot believe these so-called educated politicians can not recognize their illegal behavior. Are they not mostly qualified lawyers? Their behavior clearly demonstrates their weakness because they feel threatened by a feisty intelligent woman who, must be three times as good as them to be able to reach the heights she has achieved to get the top job. They hate her more than they care about the poor example they set for the community at large. Thank you Anne for your valid and sad findings and very valuable research.
I agree. I have on several issues disagreed with the Prime Minister about several policies, and have written to her and the relevant Minister, always addressing her as “Dear Prime Minister”. This is the way it should be done. To do otherwise is to disrespect the office, the individual and in this case, all women.
Mmmm Thank you for your frank presentation I was not aware of these vicious attacks on our Prime Minister. At no other time in Australia’s history have such attacks been allowed by supporting parlimentary staff. Thank you also for the encouragement and reminder for women to stand strong and firm against such misogynist attacks. Gender differences and feminism have long been debated and it is time again to research, talk to and offer support to women so that strength and intellectual ability are celebrated and not seen as a threat to those who are still caught in past thinking and structural patterns. I was lucky enough to have my 17 year old grandaughter with me at this lecture what a way for her to see first hand some of the reality and pedagogical patterns still happening in 2012
Well said. I have always deleted or bounced back any of these disgusting emails I receive. It is very sad to see the way we have become. No respect at all.
Excellent Anne. I just wrote a letter to the Age about this issue. Gender needs to be kept in high profile in public life. Julia is being vilified just for being born a woman, and for being strong, and women everywhere are bearing the brunt of mysogynism in various forms. Thank you!
I enjoyed this excellent article. As an architect who was one of those first young women in mens jobs in the 1970s and remembering the sexual hostility and anger associated with it, I find myself with tears in my eyes as to how our Prime Minister is being treated; regardless of her politics. Do these sexually insecure misogynists really hope we will all just die so they can have their good old boy lotus land back, where they were never challenged by women, and 51% of the population were relegated to the legal slavery of menial employment or marriage as a career option, rather than for love? I am so glad Australia is not the type of third world country that these people would like it to be.
[...] Ladylike: Julia Gillard’s misogyny speech (New Yorker); and Her rights at work (R-rated version) (Anne Summers) [...]
Thank you Anne for letting us know what the real story is with Julia. I am a huge fan and think she is a truly gutsy lady, I had no idea how gutsy. To quote Don Chipp (of all people) “Don’t let the bastards win!
Well said Anne. Even more timely now than when you gave the speech.
This webpage has been a very helpful link for those of us trying to explain to others why, yes, there really IS something gendered about the vitriol leveled against Gillard. It might seem obvious to most women and almost half the men, but some people just are not apparently aware of how foul it has become.
[...] The lecture transcript, with images and video links, can be accessed on Dr Summer’s website. [...]
I was appalled by what Ann has exposed, it is despairing to think what depths our great country has been prepared to sink to.
No one should ever have to put up with the type of abuse outlined in her presentation.
It truly is a mark of Ms Gillard’s courage and mental stamina to endure these mindless and endless tirades.
Ms Gillard displays all the traits any thinking person would embrace as the qualities required of our prime minister.
I don’t know wether to cry or rage at the insensitivity and injustice being wrought in the name of politics.
WAKE UP AUSTRALIA THIS MUST STOP NOW
I had no idea that the poltical enviroment is so toxic and so out of control. No-one should have to put up with such vile, nasty, immature behaviour. I agree with Ann Summers, that this behaviour from those who should be positive role models, puts women at further risk of violence (sexual and othetwise).What, indeed, has this country become? It shows that people in power (mostly men) will stoop to any level (such as the gutter)to hold onto any shreds of that power that they can. Clearly it is not our beautiful country that is their priority, but their own greed for power.
Imagine our PM having to endure this vile behaviour on a daily basis. I was so shocked and horrified at the disgusting images and putrid comments about Ms. Gillard I felt physically ill and was almost in tears. WE CANNOT LET THIS OUTRAGEOUS AND UNACCEPTABLE BEHAVIOUR GO ON. We need to stand beside Julia Gillard and let the perpetrators of this cowardly and illegal behaviour know that we women will NOT TOLERATE such behaviour.
Thank you Anne for this cogent analysis and frank discussion. I am shocked and saddened by the tone of our public debate and by what the PM has had to endure. While her speech this week has been an inspiration for many and – I agree – will long outlive the smallness of the public debate, the personal cost for her must be enormous. It makes me incredible sad that capable women who aspire to public roles still have to put up with this kind of disgusting treatment and – perhaps worse – the silence around it. So thanks for you work here, and your decision to stop it with you. As we used to say in ACT UP, Silence = Death, and in this case silence might well be equalling further harm for us all. I for one will be pushing back.
I loved Damned Whores and God’s Police and thanked you then. I thank you again.
I was on a road trip last week and there was a similar chatter to this on a non commercial station. That is what I heard first and this link I found posted by a friend on FB.
Thank you and wish I could have been in the audience for this.
I would like to see who can start [and conclude successfully] the proceedings re her rights at work and sexual discrimination against the perps. Yes, I would really like to see that!
a very timely piece Anne. “It stops with me” is a powerful thought and a powerful message to deliver. My somewhat anecdotal experience is that last year when i overhead a bigoted remark about an indigenous player at a football match (obviously a different issue, different context) I had the opportunity to let it slide but didn’t. The utterer of the remark basically shrank back and we didn’t hear from him for the rest of the day. Once you decide “it stops with me” and act on that it is an empowering action. i sensed that the people sitting near us who heard the exchange (including my wife and son i should say) were pleased with the outcome. I know the mindset – let it go, it’s too big to have an argument about now. But i feel that’s the problem, whether its a surfeit of politeness or shyness or lack of confidence or even conviction it feels easier to sit back, bide your time, wait for another chance, day, opportunity. But the best chance, opportunity, day is the next one you’re confronted with. Bigots are frequently by nature cowards anyway. a great message. it stops with me.
Alan from the UK,
Please be careful not to “”tar everybody with the same brush”. As disrepctful as this material is you are going down the awful path of generalisations and prejudices.
You condemn personal insults against an individual ie the Australian PM (quite rightly) but when you have an opportunity to comment about it you choose a bigger indecency and choose to insult an entire nation, or rather one particular gender of that nation. Can you not see the irony that your generalisation employs misandry? If you cannot refrain then it would be more accurate and appropriate to divert your comments to nations that prohibit women from driving, imprison women for relationships outside marriage, arranged marriages etc. Our country has it’s problems (clearly) but putting things in to perspective is a wonderful thing
All,
Thank you, Anne, for so clearly stating what has annoyed me since our Prime Minister got into office.The Prime Minister deserves our respect. Should the Prime Minister lose our confidence we can vote her out.I seek rational debate regarding the unfolding nature of Australia but too often see illogical,sexist, misogynist,irrational, superficial reactions from closed minds.The latter do not strike a positive chord with me.I do not care whether my Prime Minister is male, female, married, unmarried, atheist,Christian, Calathumpian, homosexual, red haired or albino,fat or thin, tall or short, barracks for Collingwood or South Sydney, wears glasses or not, etcetera, etcetera, or etcetera. Can he or she lead my country forward and provide the opportunities that I want? That is the key not the superficial distractions of Facebook as the country is pillaged by the wealthy to the detriment of the wider population.
Very fine piece of work Annie. I have come across it because it is linked to by The New Yorker.
The last few days: a watershed moment for women in Australia, which will long outlive the sad little Mr Slipper and his bottled oysters.
Very sad to read about all this.
So many people seem to be in constant attack and personal denigration mode. It’s an us and them mindset for them.
Lets not buy the idea that respect is a thing of the past, or that we can defend behaviour because the “other side” do it too.
Let’s not descend to join those with no standards. Such a challenge to us all at present to build goodwill, decency and respect. We will need courage and patience.
I do not agree with many of Julia Gillard’s policies, but that is immaterial. No one deserves anything like the abuse and hate that Abbott and his cronies direct at her. Like many other readers I was not aware of the extent to which this has happening, and unfortunately it seems disturbingly easy for ordinary, usually decent, but unknowingly brainwashed people to convert their disapproval of her policies into personal attacks. It really is beyond belief how backward, nasty and small-minded some Australians can be, and it certainly doesn’t make me feel proud to be Australian when I hear about them. However, I read this article with a burning desire to do something, to educate people, to stop this culture of hatred, and from now on no one will ever be allowed to get away with any such vitriol in my hearing. Your advice is exactly what I needed to read: it stops with me.
I think that Australia’s deep seated sexist culture will be the lingering impression left in the minds of people from other parts of the world. In our own country this issue has been brewing as long as Gillard has been leader. A female PM of a reformist persuasion is just threatening to many people. The national conversation has to be had, as painful as it might be.
The other point I wanted to make is that in Parliament and elsewhere that people are in positions of influence it is imperative that the national dialogue is civilised and therefore civilising. The diatribe referred to must trickle down through our society and will be interpreted by some as justifying sexual violence and a continuation of bigotry and hatred.
A speech that is as brilliant as it is shocking. Thank you for bringing this issue into the light. While this behaviour indeed reflects shockingly on Australian society, in the opposite corner I know there are countless kind, decent and fair Australian men and women who have witnessed this behaviour and are completely sick and tired of it. A feeling that is being overwhelming reflected in the comments to this speech. Finally!
Surely we can be better than this? Surely we are better than this. One hopes that speeches such as these, combined with the Prime Minister’s powerful stand yesterday will see the beginning of a clear, educated and truthful conversation in Australia about the extent to which sexual inequality still pervades within our society. As someone who was once subjected to vile and degrading sexually explicit comments in the workplace I stand in awe of Julia Gillard’s strength and courage in continuing on within such a workplace environment. Enough is enough. May we stand together and say it loud and clear.
As a UK citizen I don’t know too much about Australian politics but this just makes Australian men, in particular, look retarded, misogynistic and totally unlikeable! There should be outrage and condemnation from all decent Australians to such an extent that the perpetrators would be publicly shamed! On this showing no woman should consider running for public office! It’s downright humiliating and a national disgrace!
The imagery clearly says more about the people who send it out than it does about the person being represented. Many are threatned by powerful women and they can only return to what they see as their source of power. We know they are wrong, it’s an inflated sense of physical prowess. Julia Gillard is one amongst many strong, intelligent and capable women. I think, this too will pass, the perpetrators will stew in their own juices – we need to keep our eyes on a better future rather than being overawed by the small minded. I would have liked to hear more about the substantial cut in payments to sole parents that happened today – this surely is a topic of concern. Mounting bills, homelessness and lack of food will surely bring down many otherwise strong women.
[...] see this in some of the attacks of Australian PM Julia Gillard. As Anne Summers quoted in a recent lecture Mark Latham, former leader of the Labor party said just last year: “she’s on the public record [...]
It stops with me! Thanks Anne for shining a light on this. Yesterday’s events in Parliament brought it into perspective for me and thus my surfing of the internet news that found your blog and speech. The PMs performance in Parliament yesterday was extraordinary and timely – Well done Ms Gillard. I can only hope that it has the desired affect.
This is a brilliant lecture, I am honestly shocked by the treatment of your Prime Minister, I live in the UK and even though our coalition government is hated there is nothing that comes anywhere close to this type of attack on Cameron, Glegg et. all. It actually leads me to worry about the future of politics if personal smear campaigns are going to be carried out on sites like Facebook (no attack on FB meant here, it contains what people put into it.), which will influence young voters and can be conducted on a purely personal level under the radar. It’s interesting to note a comment above from a man named Simon, who wrote simply “written by a woman” as if that’s all he needs to say to dismiss your superb article. What more evidence is needed to show how right you are.
“Paul Keating did not proceed with the L-A-W tax cuts. John Howard introduced a GST. Both were accused of backflips and of breaking promises. Neither was ever called a “liar”.”
Actually Anne, I think you’ll find JWH was called a liar lots of times, by lots of people. Didn’t George Brandis call him a “lying rodent”? Does this not fit your narrative??
Thankyou for pointing that out! I agree that the prime minister should not have be treated like that, but that entire article was written extremely onesided..I was quite disappointed and stopped reading about half way through because it was all about how badly liberals and the public are treating her…sure she is the first female who got there, sure she has had her fair share or putdowns and harassment in the workplace, but she is the public eye 24/7, she chose to be there, and it’s not like no-one is giving Abbott a hard time either…it’s the same on both sides of the fence…tell the story with ALL of the facts, not just the ones you think fit your story Anne..
I am interested em that you feel so comfortable admitting you did not read more than half of the article before roundly condemning and commentating on the entirety of it. How can you be sure that ALL of the facts are not there if you didn’t read ALL of the article!
Em – you have missed the point. You should have noted at the start that Anne’s intention for this piece was to focus on the Prime Minister, not Abbott or anyone else. Whilst it maybe true that the PM is not the only one receiving such denigration, (and I do not believe that Anne states that she is) it is not the purpose of this piece.
Em, it might have been a good idea for you to have read the entire piece before you made up your mind and put fingers to the keys!
Great speech Anne, although it makes me deeply saddened and ashamed to think this is how our Aussie PM is being vilified. I hope that the real decent Aussies will follow your lead and speak out against the ignorance and hatred being expressed against Julia Gillard. The situation of late has moved me to sign, email and campaign against such disgraceful behaviour. Say no to sexism, for the sake of our country, our daughters and our PM.
Thank you for this work Anne, keep up the good work and please do whatever you can to pass support on to Julia Gillard from the very large number decent and fair thinking Australians who admire her courage and grace, and wish her success at the next election. We all need her decisive victory to start undoing the tremendous damage Abbott and his political and press sycophants have done to the public’s perception of politics in this country.
[...] is in any doubt that Gillard has been the victim of sustained sexist attacks, I direct them to this link. With a NSFW warning on some of the images contained therein. Actually that’s just a [...]
Written by a woman
Well spotted Simon.
Written by a women indeed, What is you point exactly, Simon?
*asking curiously*
I believe Prime Minister Ben Chifley was childless. No-one suggested that his leadership was affected by that fact.
[...] (particularly in his attacks on Gillard the Prime Minister, as outlined in even more detail in this thorough speech by Anne Summers); when Abbott sought to have Parliamentary Speaker Peter Slipper removed from office on the basis [...]
[...] as can be seen in this article by Anne Summers, Abbott’s recent comments were simply the ‘last straw’ for Gillard [...]
Thank you for bringing this stuff out in the open. I have put speech your link on my FaceBook and exhorted my friends and theirs to spread the link and to adopt your “it stops with me” proposal.
I had absolutely no idea of the level of misogyny directed against the PM – and indirectly, surely, against any woman with the temerity to assume that she can take her place in the world. The hatred is certainly irrational and it would be easy to dismiss the perpetrators as loonies, but the terms in which it is expressed make me fearful for my daughters, and incredibly sad that this level of sexism still permeates our public discourse.Thank you for bringing it into the light of day.
Like many other people who have responded, while I was dismayed at the general disrespect shown to our Prime Minister, I was unaware of the depth of the viciousness being directed at Julia Gillard. It obviously requires a tough personality or strong self-belief to be able to survive our Parliamentary system, but we should never stand by and accept personal vilification as part that system. The Prime Minister’s speech on misogyny moved me immensely: as a woman in the workplace for many years, I have had my share of outright sexual bullying and more subtle wearing down to put up with, but cannot imagine the personal strength it must take for the Prime Minister to face day after day of such abuse and still get on with doing her job with dignity. I don’t agree with all her policies or actions, but that’s immaterial. I have an increased respect for her tenacity and resilience, feel real compassion for her as a human being – and hope Australians are big enough to give her a fair go. Thank you Anne for the message: it stops with me.
I have had young people I know repeat some of this irrational, vitriolic abuse. I was shocked to hear it, but now understand why, as I was unaware of the widespread nature of this abuse of the Prime Minister. It is particularly upsetting that the many good journalists who report on Federal politics have not seen their way to report on this. Their interpretation of objectivity does Australia a disservice.
Shocked, I was aware of some of the abuse of our Prime Minister, but not to the extent that you expose. My personal experience is that the hate campaign is actually irrational, those that I question cannot articulate exactly what their “beef” is with our Prime Minister. But the language is exclusively anti- woman, every derogatory term ever dreamt up. What amazes me even more is that women are also running with the rabid pack. It all makes me very sad indeed.
The way your Prime Minister has been attacked and degraded in media, be it mainstream or (anti)social beggars belief. Whatever one’s political leanings, to reduce political debate and criticism to such a gutter level of personal attacks and abuse says so much more about the commentators than the politician in question. Let politicians be judged on the state they leave the nation – financially, socially, environmentally – compared to when they took office, and the manner in which they conduct themselves in doing so – not on their gender, marital status, race or hair colour. If I were Australian, I would be feeling immensely proud of my country’s first ever female Prime Minister after her speech on misogyny. After reading this article I feel like sending her flowers for her strength in the face of the utterly contemptuous abuse she has received – but somehow feel that flowers wouldn’t quite do justice to her perseverance. Abbot talks about someone “more capable in physiology and temperament to exercise authority and issue command” – well, here she is.
Very important that you are putting this out there, I found it too upsetting to keep reading. The Prime Minister deserves respect, I think she is doing a fantastic job and is obviously an amazing woman. Disappointed that people can’t engage in debate on the issues, show respect deserved and leave unnecessary personal comments/insults and slurs unspoken.
Thank you very much for a very eye-opening article/speech, Anne. I knew there was some misogynistic abuse of Julia Gillard out there, but I had no idea of the extent and viciousness of it.
I wonder whether you would consider providing updates to your original article, given the recent abuse of Ms Gillard after her Facebook Q&A, and her impressive response to Tony Abbott in question time, also addressing the issue of misogyny and sexism? I think it would be very useful to have the abuse Ms Gillard receives documented in an on-going manner.
[...] our Prime Minister was a liar and fed off the teat of the spin campaign, read this article: Her Rights at Work (R-rated version). Anne Summers AO Ph.D, gives a frank lecture predominantly about Ms Gillard’s treatment [...]
As a university educated, Sydney Morning Herald, ABC watcher and listener, and feminist, I had no idea this stuff was out there. It makes me sad. The first thing I’m going to do is talk to my three teenage sons.
While not a fan of Julia Gillard, the Abbot camp had no hope of ever recieving my support in any election as I have even since the Howard era blamed the Liberal Party for the disrespect circulating in our community, at our fellow citizens and at those very much in need of our friendship and compassion. I have been for a long time appalled and disgusted by the language of abuse and personalised vilification that has been aimed at the leader of this great country of ours and I might add toward any powerful woman with the audacity to show strength and characate. I have indeed already returned some particulary nasty supposedly funny emails to the sender and I applaud your encouragement for others to do likewise. I have unashamedly posted this speech on my Facebook page to make it clear what my opinion is.
Thank you Anne for your wonderfully descriptive, well researched and real presentation. Whilst reading through I was struck by a meridian of emotional responses. Being a Gillard advocate I’m saddened by the way greater Australia are treating our Prime Minister and only hope this shocking treatment will shift and be diluted to ensure a continued leadership by Gillard. Having just had a daughter I’m again saddened to think she is entering a modern world with such base views and opinions of women in power. We may live in a modern progressive society but your paper has proved we aren’t as progressive, evolved and respectful of others as we should be.
[...] moral equivalence in one’s own defence. But, it doesn’t work when these critics have a back catalogue of the reprehensible behaviour of any martyr in question. Cry as one might, you will be held [...]
I am gobsmacked, horrified and needed someone to turn on the lights. Thank you Anne for bringing all of this together so succinctly and logically. It was obviously way overdue.
Thank you Anne. I read your article in the SMH with same title but this gives the full ‘Monty’ on this issue. I agree with most of your other commentators but what has happened should come as no surprise. Men have indulged in this stuff since time immemorial. Powerful women must be demonised, and destroyed. What is new I think is the power of the Internet to show us women what a lot of men really think of us. It gives us tools to fight back with dignity and gives us power. Taking the fight to Jone’s advertisers is one example. Making known what is happening, as you have done, is another. Knowledge is power, as they say!
[...] interested in an analysis of the treatment of the Prime Minister, I recommend Anne Summers “Her Rights at Work (R-rated)” addressing the topic of the political persecution of the Prime [...]
Most timely and welcome. Its on my Facebook page. Thank you.
While much of the viciousness directed at Julia Gillard is undoubtedly of serious intent, at least some of it appears to represent the destructive, showing-off group-think of the twittering class.
Thank you for this compilation. I was aware, of course, that there have been sexist slurs, but I had no idea it went this far! I’m a swinging voter, choosing on performance merit, and I’m now prouder than ever to say Abbott has never had chance of gaining my vote, purely by virtue of his devotion to degrading others instead of presenting alternative policies of governance. But refusing to be sucked in by this posse of angry opposers (are they jealous, or simply confused that they can no longer stick women in mass-defining pigeon holes?) is no longer enough. How, without being accused of their own bullying tactics, to ‘out’ the offenders to everyone else who doesn’t know the extent of it? How to educate those who are sucked in by it?
The immaturity of Australian politicians’ behaviour has offended me for years, but this really is too much. It all has to end. Not only does the public and media have to stop proliferating rubbish; but we need new candidates who will raise the bar so there are some options other than the least worst choice. Those who make a career out of hating “Julia” should just get counselling for their own feelings of inadequacy, and start making a positive contribution to society. Time to grow up and stop embarassing the nation on the world stage.
Thank you for assembling these facts into the one place. By and large, which I agree is not good enough, decent and reasonable people are affronted by the horrible discourse in Australia. Jones crossed a line he apparently didn’t know was there to be stranded and exposed by his “mates”.
Perhaps we should be grateful that he has sparked a broader public revulsion, while acknowledging that tolerance of these miserably low standards equate to acceptance.
You are right it is time to say enough on a broad spectrum. What is assumed away is that men have wives and daughters who they believe should not subjected to vile insults.
I too am grateful for your shining a coherent light on this, ignoring it or deleting emails is just not good enough.
What we had seen in the mass media (except for the ABC) was just the tip of the iceberg. All women should take your information very seriously, because it means that none of us is safe. It is a short step from abusive language, dirty jokes and verbal threats to violence against women, and we know that is still rampant – sadly, we saw that it lurks in the streets of Melbourne even now… Misogyny is a disease in Australia, spread by media bullies like Alan Jones. Now the voters of Australia need to know how they have been manipulated by such people with secret and selfish agendas. Thank you for shining a light on this. I have to say that our Prime Minister is a remarkable woman indeed to cope with this ongoing warfare – I respect her even more.
Thank you for these revelations of unethical behavior. I have been peripherally aware of this maltreatment of the Prime Minister, and I must say I admire her courage to withstand it, as well as her perseverance in spite of this to serve the nation well. In the same breath, I must say that I hold Abbott and the Liberal Party largely responsible for this misogynic campaign. I find it repugnant and inconceivable that Abbott would act in such an immature fashion as to mutter the word “liar” sotto voce when the Prime Minister addresses the Parliament. Now he brings his wife into the public eye to counter his acts of misogyny. And this is a man who seeks the Prime Ministership? Heaven forbid!
I am pleased that the community has finally found its voice to denounce Alan Jones and his desecration of the death of the Prime Minister’s father. I think the community should also castigate Hadley, Bolt and Pickering. I found the timing of the leaks of Oakes baffling at the time; an objective journalist throwing his considerable weight around to influence the course of history?
Thank you again. And I will take your advice and say, “This stops with me.”
It’s not what you say Anne. It’s what those who read it do with the message. If readers only nod their heads and and say how bad it is little will be achieved.
If this message affected your readers the way it did me you will make it a personal campaign to pass on to everyone you know and be prepared to take people on whom you know will buck at the message.
We need everyone on both (or is that all) sides of politics to run with Anne’s ideas and make this a better place for all to live.
Thank you for articulating so clearly the sexual used nature of the abuse of Julia Gillsrd. No human being deserves to be the subject of such harrassment nd abuse. L
Bravo! Thank you for your painstaking hard work on this article. Australia needed for this to be written. I will do anything I can to support the outlawing of this disgusting behaviour in the political arena. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
All the above is both true and embarrassing. Alan Jones got it wrong. He should have blamed Juliars father.
Well done, Anne, on so well highlighting this disgusting trend that has taken place in what purports to be a civilised country. Thankfully there are many people out there fighting for justice and defending the rights of the individual. Sadly, however, Julia Gillard is in the position where she is viewed as fair ‘game’, to be hunted down and subjected to disgusting and atrocious and UNACCEPTABLE behaviour. Equally sad is the fact that because of her position, and the job she has taken on, she cannot do anything about them, except, as she has done, rise above them.
Since migrating to Australia from Ireland 34 years ago, and as a high school teacher, I have found myself constantly amazed at how uninformed some – thankfully, not the majority – young Australians are in regard to what constitutes sexism and racism in our society. I battle every day to inform my students about these issues, sometimes meeting exactly the same kind of resistance and excuses displayed in some of the replies on this site. I will NEVER stop challenging my students to open their minds and their hearts to other ways of seeing the world. It has always stopped with me and, hopefully, it will continue to stop with my amazingly wonderful students.
Well done Ro for recalling that distinction. MS Grattan has clearly not supported our Prime Minister from the get go, what is that about? It has all been dog whistling! Well done Anne
A very interesting read. I wouldn’t say a agree completely with the idea but I certainly feel constant shame at the treatment of our PM. I note in passing that those who have commented in the negative so far are mostly men, and also mostly haven’t posted under their real names.
Thank you Anne for articulating so beautifully what I’m sure many of us have thought for some time. Your speech is so well researched and considered. My thanks and congratulations!
While all political leaders, male and female, since time began, almost everywhere, have been vilified in similar ways, an exposé like this will garner many emotive sympathies.
And, at the end of the day, Gillard is playing the sympathy vote for all its worth, and its worth a lot. She wins. The gender divide widens.
Such sexist rhetoric just fuels the fire and is completely unnecessary.
Julia Gillard is a person and a prime minister. Why does she have to be labelled and boxed as female, married and childless, red haired, or any other limiting and dividing thing? Why create a divide by making something gender specific when it doesn’t need to be?
Why, for instance, take a remark about lying and shame and call it ‘sexist?’ If it was said about Obama would it be automatically racist?
You can call it an affront to a person and leave it there or you can call it a sexist affront and awaken the emotive gender specific roaring tiger of women in general, ignite the divide between men and women and get (keep) them fighting among themselves.
Why keep this (now, in Australia, for argument’s sake) useless battle going? Why fuel it with this sort of attention? Splitting hairs like this and labelling something as sexist simply opens up a never ending fringe battle and keeps everyone busy there, as usual, keeping their eye off the ball in play.
Sidelining the issue and unnecessarily muddying it with all the usual feminist rhetoric is not only unhelpfully time wasting, but surely you can see; it is intensifying and widening the divide itself by gratuitously creating an ongoing oppositional stance against up to half of the all people.
Many exploit this classic war game tactic of divide and conquer. Many count on it. All sides are weakened and only the most powerful win. The winners mostly have quite separate agendas – like making money. There are many in positions of power who like to keep people divided and in their weakened place. Please don’t keep playing into their hands. As simply ‘people’ we will be much stronger, and happier.
Please don’t keep fuelling the fire. Let the divide dissolve. If nothing else, as mothers, we owe this to our boy children, if we don’t wish to see them persecuted for simply being born a male.
I have been overseas on two holidays this year, one to the UK and one to South Africa. Well….the men treat women with respect in those two places, and I have found over many years, as I travelled far and wide, I was treated well. Australia is another matter. I guess the personal insults I have received by men, have been by Australian men only. That is a fact. They have no idea and do not know when to stop. So, an intelligent woman who opposes a male’s views gets vilified in this place. If you are a bimbo, and have long blonde hair, or big breasts, and are not opposing a man’s agenda, you are not subjected to insults, but then again, you are the recipient of sexual inuendos of course. The women in this case, are much to blame as they encourage the same by adapting to the stereotype the male likes them to be. I have also noticed that the women of the Liberal party, are always coming across as grossly anti-woman and dare I say, bitchy in the highest order. They should be supporting the females no matter what political persuasion. Julia Gillard must be one of the strongest women I have ever known. Any other would be a basket case by now, with all the vitreole thrown at her, But then again, if one chooses to ignore them and just get on with life, it does help. She has shown great courage. I do not think the Alan Jones’s types are worth my time of day really, but we have to from time to time, stand up against them. We are not ignorant of the facts and what they say and the reasons behind such hatred. It is comforting though to know we are not like them, and I do not care if that sounds holier than thou or not, it just says we are happy to do our bit, and that they are not really part of our lives and we would never wish them to be. If one can find a sense of humour through their bigotry, and you can sometimes, it goes a long way. I am just so ashamed to be Australian, especially when we are a bit of a laughing stock overseas due to comments expressed by the Cory Benardi (not sure of spelling and who cares) types. Even the British Tory party have rejected him. What a joke, makes one want to migrate to more civilised shores.
Thank you for opening discussion on the real issue. I am disgusted, daily, with the low level of argument and personal attacks used by people running, or aspiring to to run, our country. I have the utmost respect for Prime Minister Gillard as the leader of our country and believe the same baseline respect must be given to any person holding the position. The recent questioning of “Julia’s silence” is yet another example of a vocal element in society that relentlessly bates an attacks, believing this to be, somehow, a valid form of debate. I’m grateful that well contructed arguments such as this are still present in a society that has slid, largely, into a culture of celebrity and vitriol. Prime Minister Gillard and her Government have implemented a vital piece of legislation to contribute to the overall well- being and long-term function of our country and the planet. I applaude the Australian Government for taking action on a long-term issue, in spite of the short term backlash. Prime Minister Gillard deserves respect, and the political debate needs to make a swift turn towards discussion on policies that affect our nation with a balanced approach to the long and short term and away from schoolyard bullying and slur tactics once reserved for kids who don’t know any better.
Dear Anne, I have just read the ‘R’ rated version and my heart skipped a beat. This is really a very undignified and disgusting denigration of our Prime Minister. Yes it is all about her gender. I am writing this after that other disgusting outburst by that foul mouthed Alan Jones. I commend you on your effort to address this very serious and indefensible behaviour by all who have contributed. I am very angry with all those who claim (some on these reply pages) that she needs to go as she has led this country poorly. NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH!!! This current Federal Government has managed to pass a few hundred bills in a very hostile environment. This is not a Prime Minister who has ruined our country. If people want to see that happen they can vote in Abbot!!! As for the Prime Minister being a liar that is also (apart from inaccurate)a lie in itself. Abbot has milked this and he has misled the Australian people. The part he leaves out is that Ms. Gillard had to reneg on what she had promised as she did not have a crystal ball at the time and could not predict that there would be a hung parliament. Tony Abbot may now say that he would never have agreed to this but this is the same person who also said he would ‘do anything’. He cannot have it both ways (although he believes he can). I admire our Prime Minister even more now that she has refused to speak to Alan Jones. Thank you again and I too will be someone who says, “It stops with me”.
Well done! You said it Anne and I confirm – It stops with me!
I am tired of all the loathsome things that are said about the Prime Minister; it has got so bad it is almost a national sport. As for the ‘LIE’, I feel it was more like a broken promise due to a forced change of direction after the hung Parliament. If someone reluctantly gets divorced are they called a liar just because they broke their wedding vows! Women who make bitchy comments about her appearance embolden some men to go further into the gutter. I was so disappointed when a woman I have admired for her achievements in a (relatively) man’s world, Gai Waterhouse, commented on a photo of Julia taken just after the earthquakes in Japan, (surrounded by horrifying grief and devastation) saying – “She desperately needs a makeover. It wasn’t the carnage behind that gave me the horrors, but the woman standing in front of it”.
Power will always use bullying tactics if it cannot win the debate with evidence. The power, whether it is Abbott and his cronies, the Sussex St boys/mafia or the Mining lobby, are in this case bullying the PM and using gender as their weapon. The only way to end the bullying is to shine a light on it and call on it to stop. Congratulations on a great article. The mysoginists are now being exposed and their influence will be diminished.
Great article. Although I sometimes wonder whether one needs to encompass other factors like concentration of media ownership and the consequent convergence of opinion is at the root of these issues. I like to believe that there are similar views to yours in the world today that are not represented in the mainstream media.
Very interesting speech, and very insightful, particularly in the light of recent events.
But I’m not sure about the helpfulness of your argument that the PM is being “bullied at work”. I can’t help feeling that this undermines her even more.
This is one of the most powerful people in Australia. I am all in favour of a general discussion about the standard of political discourse in this country, and the examples you have highlighted certainly show the depths to which it has sunk.
But Prime Minister Gillard is the leader of the country. She is entitled to more respect, but somehow your defence of her seems more appropriate for an under-appreciated junior office worker being harassed by the sales reps.
Thank you, I am one of those people who up until now has delete the emails and skipped over the comments convincing myself it was best ignored,until the last few days. My respect for our PM (always there)has increased 100 fold after reading this, for the dignity and strength with which she has carried herself throughout.
I personally believe it’s not about being female it’s about being incompetent . Stop making excuses for her she has NO idea how to run this country I do not like Abbott either so I’m not saying he is the answer but honestly I dont think we could do worse than what we got
MC,
Who does have an idea how to run a country (a country!)? No-one does. It’s not a job you can even reasonably prepare for, or comprehend. Actually our parliament, and our public servants ‘run’ the country, whatever that means. The Prime Minister, chosen by her party, who are elected by most of us (a preferential system makes this more true than almost any other voting system), consider her to be able to do the ‘leadership’ part of the job better than any of them (and they continue choosing to do so).
And as a kindergarten teacher, I know that everyone, children upwards, works better and more capably when people respect and believe in them. So let’s not make an impossible job any harder, right?
It stops with me.
Australian citizens and residents should always be free to criticise our government for its policy, its words, its deeds.
We should be free to criticise individual politicians for their public words and actions.
Noone should not be criticised for their appearance, nor their private life unless their private words or actions impact *directly* on their character and fitness for the office they hold (ie proven criminal or hypocritical behaviour).
Frankly, I don’t see this behaviour decreasing while Abbott is Opposition Leader, and while that is a personal criticism, it is backed by the behaviour he displays publicly. (Howard would never have tolerated such blatant misbehaviour under his leadership.)
It stops with me.
I had some inkling of what was going on thanks to Dennis Atkins (National Affairs Editor , The Courier Mail) writing an article in The Courier Mail a couple of months ago (Despatch Box whispers) and I have been using it to attack those who post “Comments” on online editions of media.
I found Anne Summers speech via a “Comments” section in the Murdoch “The Australian” just yesterday and I am just so stunned by what she has reported that I am more than happy to add my name to those who say “it stops with me”.
I have forwarded the Link to this speech to all my friends and contacts (with the R rated warning) asking them if this is what they want for Australia, I also try to include it into any “Comment” that I make in any media form, although Fairfax Media has rejected most they have let a couple be posted.
Thank you Ms Anne Summers for giving this speech.
I’d like to point out something that really bothers me, which I see perpetuated over and over again.
THE PM DID NOT LIE ABOUT A CARBON TAX. We do not have a carbon tax, we have a carbon price. If you want to know the difference, ask an economist – but not all monies rendered to government are actually taxes, for example, you don’t call uni fees or a speeding fine a tax.
This is what the PM actually said:
“I don’t rule out the possibility of legislating a Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, a market-based mechanism. I rule out a carbon tax.”
Technically, in legal and economic terms, we have the former, not the latter.
I MUST BE LIVING IN A BUBBLE. I WAS TOTALLY UNAWARE OF THESE EPHIHTHETS OF A DENIGRATING NATURE AGAINST JULIA GILLARD AND BY EXTRAPOLATION, THE FEMALE GENDER.
IT STOPS WITH ME!!!!
Jeremy, I am aware of this and was not seeking to prevent people from quoting but was simply asking them to get permission before reproducing it. People are doing this, by and large, before they run it in their own newsletters, blogs etc. I have not denied anyone permission to reprint it and, you will note, I encourage people to share it on Twitter and Facebook.
Thank you Anne,
for an intelligent, articulate analysis of the treatment of our Prime Minister, Ms Julia Gillard, and the bullying, disrepect, and utter filth which some members of our community have utilised in an attempt to bring Ms Gillard down. I was lucky enough to hear you speaking on ABC,local radio this morning, and wish I had discovered you earlier. However, never too late to catch up. And, as a nation, and a community, we need to start asking questions, and analysing the media “spew” so we can make a more informed decision, or form a view, rather than form our opinion by listening to the “shock jocks”…thank goodness I have matured past those days, ABC all the way. And agree with Caroline, Ms Gillard’s strength, and integrity is a model for the more emotional females amongst us, speaking for myself here. Sue
A heads-up, you can’t prevent people from quoting from your work without permission. Quotation is a right reserved to the public under the Copyright Act, and indeed under the Berne Convention. Your claim that permission is required is incorrect.
Anne I will be attending the Community Cabinet meeting in Launceston tonight purely to support our Prime Minister given the ongoing villification of her on a daily basis. Her strength, courage and stamina to remain focussed on her job and commitment to the Australian people is astounding and makes her a much better woman than I! I personally would have been destroyed by the behaviours in Parliament alone, let alone the destructive elements of the meda who treat her and her office with such disrespect beyond belief. Ms Gillard is the epitome of “what doesn’t kill you, only makes you stronger”. Caroline
Well thats an illuminating article on the mysoginism that permeates our culture. Dissapointing and clearly deliberate. I wonder however if it is a thought out policy of vilification or if it is a meme in the sense that Australians are just such sexists that it permeates everything.
I genuinely feel dissapointment in Rudd and Gillard for how things are playing out. With Abbott I just have a sense of healthy fear should he ever get the Prime Ministers job. I’m sensible enough to know that I prefer Gillard as PM over Abbott because everything he touches seems to wither and die due to his massive ego and mysoginism coupled with his infantile religous zeal.
I do wish that we didn’t have such a disspointing Prime Minister (and such a loathsome leader of the opposition) but I’m objective enough to see that it is probably the backroom “boys” who are the real issue and not Gillard. This article has me wondering if the real issue for her dissapointing behaviour is due to the party politic and inherent sexism coupled with the media attack on Gillard and Rudd, is it a case of leading and not being followed except to knife in the back? Certianly if it is a part of that must be due to her gender and a part of it must be due to the coup that removed Rudd?).
Seemingly the status quo of modern Australia is that we don’t really like woman on top but we make the right noises and hope that no one notices while we scratch our nuts…
Thank you for cataloguing and exposing the disgusting behaviour that has Julia Gilllard as its target.
Thank you Anne for highlighting what is a very dark side to our Nation. Its a great relief to have you say what many of us are not able to say. We can only trust and hope that Tony Abbott never leads this Country or it really will be Heaven help us.
Disgusting to say the least, and I had no idea as to the depths of vulgarity this anti-Julia campaign has sunk to. This behaviour is one of the reasons why I left Australia.
Incredibly embarrassing to mention that I am Australian to be frank with this epidemic of bogan and neandetal mentality sweeping the nation. I now say, ‘I was born in Australia’.
The second issue…the treatment of asylum seekers. Disgraceful!…and indigenous people…the same!
Very doubtful I will ever return home whilst Abbot et al are on the parliamentary platform.
Seems to me there’s a corrosive mood on the ascendancy in Australia. The ugly, sexist campaign against the PM, the ugly, racist campaign against the dispossessed coming here as refugees. These may well be linked to insecurity and fear, to misogyny and racism, but in eroding the dignity of others this cruel behaviour also erodes the dignity of those making these vicious statements in the first place. Whether this behaviour begins in Parliament or not, that’s where it seems most dangerous because of the sad example it sets, and the permission it implies for take up by the rest of the country. It’s particularly curious that in attacking the PM for perceived traits and actions, these confused souls see no contradiction in exhibiting abusive behaviours all their own. It’s a mean meme indeed, and quite possible that today’s abusive comments could morph into tomorrow’s fascism.
I admire Prime Minister Gillard’s courage and determination, and her grace under pressure. She’s an example of not losing one’s head when other’s couldn’t be doing more to lose their own. It makes one wonder what’s not to like about living intentional lives, doing no harm and cultivating the best in ourselves … or is that just too challenging when succumbing to baseness and hatred is apparently so much more compelling? We’ll never be utopia, but maybe if those trapped in a mire of loathing could retrieved their self-respect and respect for others we’d end up with a more engaging national debate and an easier country to share with one another.
thank you for shining a light on this, it is utterly disturbing to see the pattern and growth in sexist abuse our PM, and women with a public profile in general, have to endure. We as a society have to stand up and draw a line in the sand, beginning with the agitation for the withdrawal of all forms of support for Alan Jones following his disgraceful comments.
Not a Gillard fan, at all. Did not like being lied to over the carbon tax or the mandate claimed by virtue of a Green flavoured win – I believe that these things have really taken to a new level the vitriol that we now see in voter land.
I do not see it any differently to the kinds of vilification directed at Howard (Little Johnny, fascist, etc), Abbott(Mad monk, woman hater, lycra lout, budgie smugglers, etc), Keating (lounge lizard, closet gay, vitriolic) or Hawke (womaniser, drunk, turncoat) over the years. The undeniable fact that the fire hose has been turned on Gillard, is due in some part to the people’s judgement of her performance, not solely her gender. Those who would champion Gillard’s cause, while decrying the perceived excesses of the “other side” can’t have it both ways.
I really don’t think that the keyboard warriors of Facebook dictate the level of public discourse, any more than does the likes of Alan Jones in shock media land. Of Jones, it seems perfectly acceptable in certain circles to refer to his alleged exploits in toilet blocks or his closeted homosexuality, in efforts to disparage him. His political rhetoric seems to disqualify him from the outpouring of sympathy granted to Julia Gillard within those same circles.
Abuse of parliamentarians doesn’t stop with me, either. It stops in Parliament, when they all lead by example, and start acting like grown-ups instead of over-grown children.
The problem is that politicians are guided by what they believe the public wants. The fact that this sexist material exists is because it is perceived as wanted or being able to influence the general public. So it is up to the general public (i.e. all of us, including you) to say no to offensive material. As a member of the Australian Democrats, I campaigned and protested against John Howard’s policies but I did speak against others who denigraded him personally because after all, he was the Prime Minister and personal attacks in my view, weakened the strong argument against his policies. And he was not subjected to the same vitriol that Julia gillard is as Prime Minister.
So yes, it stops with you, your mates, your electorate and then up to you local representative and his buddies in Parliament.
Thank you for putting this so eloquently. By shifting to a workplace legal requirement makes me realise I would never hesitate to take action, but as a PM those rights don’t seem to apply. I have long felt the treament of our PM was disgraceful but had no idea how disgraceful. Thank you for having the ability to write this so well. I may often have thought similar thoughts about John Howard but I believed that there was legislation against demeaning the Prime Minister publicly as part of the Anti Terrorism laws.I feel that Joan Kirner suffered the same sort of vilification with the oversized spotted dress cartoons. As a nation we really need to invest more into educating the next generation on tolerance and understanding. Thank you very much for the support I feel I have gained. It always stopped with me.
I would like to see the PM sue these lowlifes. They are bullying her because they know that the media, led by the Murdoch stable is under riding instructions to bring Labor down. Murdoch has said that he thinks Abbott would make a good PM.If he has the arrogance to say that publicly, we all understand what is going on behind the scenes.
I say sue. Start with Abbott, Alan Jones and Pickering.
Thank you for this article
how saddening what is happening in Australia at this juncture of history
It was almost a relief to read your speech, Anne. The undertone has been out there for too long and getting louder. I haven’t come across so many of these hideous references to Julia Gillard, possibly because I don’t listen much to talkback radio and would probably not listen to Alan Jones, even if I believed his would be the last human voice I might hear, or perhaps I mean, ‘especially if …’
But I am grateful to you for ‘shining the light’ into this dark place and certainly join you in declaring about racism and sexism: ‘it stops with me’.
I admire and respect Julia Gillard and am proud that she is our prime minister, not only because she is female.
Thanks for articulating what so many of us have felt powerless to say. It stops with me.
Well done Anne, this deplorable behaviour needed exposure. I love colourful language and wit however this falls way short, being a degusting misogynist calculated tirade on a woman whose humanity and position deserve respect. The word cunt has been used in parliament before but with good humour. Wake up Australia this attitude & behaviour demeans us all.
“It stops with me!”
Another example of the vilification of Prime Minister Gillard is the merchandise available on eBay. Check it out by typing in Julia Gillard and other male politicians and see the difference. The persecution of our prime minister: it stops with me.
All this sort of behavior makes it very embarrassing to be Australian. I even have a liberal voting friend who I thought was more intelligent who has taken on the ‘Ditch the bitch’ chant. I really don’t remember such derogatory terms being used against a male PM. We seem to be living in the backwaters here when you see such imbecilic behavior and we must look idiots on the international stage.
I heard you interviewed on Radio National last night, but that still did not prepare me for the content of your speech. I was proud when our first female prime minister was elected, but am now disappointed at the vitriol directed at her. I hope that your research makes people sit back and think about Julia the prime minister and not Julia the woman.
After the comments over the weekend of Alan Jones this article reinforces the need for all australians to fully comprehend what is happening here. Thank you for an excellent article. I agree it starts with us. Each and every person must make a stand. That is way I am writing this. In appreciation of this article. May it reach the inbox of our young, not so young!
. You have so accurately spoke about the disrespect,vile remarks and rude pictures directed at our very first fine female prime minister of Australia.No other politician is subjected to such treatment.SHAME to the bullies ,the sexist and the attackers.
May be The prime minister can begin to sue these people for defamation, bullying and harrassment.No lack of evidence to support her case.
Sorry but its a fact our culture is racist and sexist-and becos Julia is a female–she is target to sexual slur, innuendo and as you have shown, gross degrading insult, much more than male leaders have been. They had their platform policies satirised but not their sexuality. It is becos she is a female that our Culture crosses the line with impunity to insult Julia in this gutter level way which would not happen were she male.Its same old same old–every women batting in a male domain has had to be very good at her work and even better at coping with the barage of undermining but not hit back–as then she would be seen as ‘bitchy’. Women in some directorships have been seen as token men-losing their femininity to play the corporate game as hard as the blokes. We have more women in Parliament than ever before which is a good thing but Julia is our first female leader. She is being crucified doubly. For policy debacles but also because as a woman she is viewed as vulnerable and a fair target to degrade. I hate this in the huam psyche. It is what happens with pack rape. Egging each other on. Noone making a stand for human respect and dignity. Going with the group/pack mentality. Tearing others down to make themselves feel important. Also the people who join in commenting on sick sites need to find something better to do with their time and cleverness. They need work. Ship them all to mining towns. Or inspire people to be positively involved in their communities and volunteer to help with the many groups desperate for helping hands. Long live free speech. We dont live in ‘pussy riot’ jail culture as in Russia. Or torture anyone who speaks against the govt. In America we would be labelled ‘UN American’ if we spoke unpatriotically about our leader.
I also hate this in the huMan psyche, mainly because it is oh so ugly; and had thought it an atrocious display of human intellect to claim ‘we live in a neutral environment’blah, blah, blah – for example.
How anyone could read this article in it’s entirety and not ‘get’ the main thrust of it is beyond me. Which is why I had liked reading your comments so much–and more than once BTW, you are a clever lady Mary Smith.
*with one eyebrow raised*
Oh, and one last thing Mary, your comment Starting with ‘It’s the same old story’and ending with a ‘bitchy’ perception of a female, was absolutely relatable and struck a real cord with me.
If we do not smile sweetly, bat our eyelids, and swish our arses while trying to make some relevant point 9 times out of 10, then we are basically seen as hard nosed or frustrated bitches;mainly I think because men can find it frightening to deal with a women without the ditsy milk and two sugars approach.
It’s an ancient mindset, and very hard one too break.
But it’s nice to know I’m not the only one that knows this feeling, even though it can be an awful experience to have to deal with in reality.
Thank You, for your wise words.
That’s all,I shall leave you in peace now.
geeze louise, where to start?
firstly on a factual inaccuracy, john howard WENT TO AN ELECTION with the GST and was voted in… he essentially held a referendum and gained the support of the people. he did not say before the election that there would be no GST on his watch, then backflip post election in the same way julia gillard did… this is simply facts, had julia run to an election with the promise for a carbon tax she wouldnt be prime minister…
the ‘liar’ tag i see as simply a play on her name… i know you have to be a wordsmith to deduct ‘liar’ from ‘juliar’, but seeing as you’ve managed to scrape together a few thousand words, im sure you can comprehend that neither paul keating nor john howard have the word ‘liar’ even anagrammed within their names… even still, its a long bow to draw to call it ‘sexist’ to refer to julia as a liar, especially given my first point…
i honestly havent bothered reading the whole article, nor all the comments… tldr… im just a little sick of the ‘club of the persecuted’ mentality displayed by women, and i dont think it does anything for equality tbh… for example, when liesel jones was denounced as being over weight in the media, feminists (and others) jumped on the slur as being ‘sexist’… firstly, an athletes body is completely relevant to their job, any comments good or bad are of interest. secondly, luke hodge, dane swan, ian thorpe among others have all been criticised as being over weight at points, but the comments are not denounced as being ‘sexist’ or irrelevant as they were in liese jones case (who failed to place at the olympics)
so following on, julia gillards character is completely relevant for discussion, as we need to know who we are voting for in a politician etc… her decision not to marry and not to have children IS relevant as it forms her character. we learnt all about kevin rudd’s wife and her business dealings, as well as other politicians and their sexuality (penny wong) etc. so when people discuss julia gillards hairdresser ‘partner’ or her decision not to have children, its completely relevant for discussion and shouldnt be deemed to be ‘sexist’…
the fact that even julia gillard admits to foregoing motherhood in order to peruse her political career even lends weight to the business world’s decision not to invest in female executives on the same grounds… the so called ‘glass ceiling’ has more to do with availability then gender, it just happens that most women are unavailable to work for extended periods of time due to life choices (having a child, for example)
anyway, long story short… people comment about politicians (and other identities) clothes, weight, marital status, haircut, etc etc etc, yet its only sexist when its directed towards a female… the argument is quite frankly dumb… we live in a gender neutral environment… more women in university, women have longer life expectancy etc etc… try going to a country where women actually dont have any rights and fighting the fight there, not worrying about the language nuances when it comes it australian politics…
im still wondering why its a travesty when women and/or children die at war, but not men…?
You are very misguided. You make some fair points, but display the same inability to grasp what is in front of you as so many other men who don’t want to accept their own misogyny. This passage is particularly insane: “…we live in a gender neutral environment…”. how wrong you are!
Thank-you Anne. I am all for vigorous debate in our parliamentary system, but I agree that the vitriol has reached a new unacceptable level. I agree there are really disturbing sexist overtones, and I also agree that this degrades our national discourse and makes the previously unacceptable and shocking seem passe. I suspect that our Prime Minister would be less concerned than us about all this, and I respect her for that. I actually disagree with a lot of what she has stood for, but, gee, it is hard not to admire her.
David
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Dear Anne
Thank you for illuminating what has been for me an uncomfortable feeling about how our PM is treated. It is a sad reminder that, as women we are still not equal.
My Mother wanted me to pass on to you a description of a poster she saw in a butcher shop widnow at Willunga in South Australia. The poster featured a charicature of our PM as a sort of emu style bird and underneath was written
“Number 1 on Australia’s most hated vermin list. Highly venonous and willfully destructuive. Fat red headed liar bird. Shoot on sight. ”
She was appalled and needless to say has not ever been into that shop again. It seems to me this kind of vitriol should be prosecuted; it is far from a harmless comment it is a threat!
It is bizzare what we have become as a nation !
Vicki
I have to agree with the central thesis of Anne’s talk – I too have heard astonishingly offensive things said about PM Julia Gillard and I agree that there is a great deal of sexism in the comments. Amazingly, the tenor of what I’ve heard about Ms Gillard has been even worse than that about the openly gay Dr Bob Brown, an obvious target in a still homophobic society.
I have discovered a useful rejoinder to people who tell me they “hate that bitch” (or worse) – I say, “OK, you don’t like Julia Gillard but are you seriously telling me that your man is the best shot you have in your locker?” (one can guarantee that anyone using filthy language about Julia Gillard is a Coalition supporter – Greens complaints centre on Labor’s ayslum seeker policy). The response so far has exceeded my wildest dreams – on every occasion I’ve said it I’ve obtained immediate agreement that he isn’t and with a bit of prompting, most will even agree that they are quite apprehensive of what Tony Abbott might do if he became PM and were consequently obliged to do more than act like a tedious little prick. (Maybe your next article could be about incipient sizism – “Little Johnny Howard” and Abbott’s budgie).
On the more general issue of debasement of political debate I believe the abysmal standard of Australian journalism, including at places like the ABC, where journalists weren’t always opinionated and uninformed sesationalisers, has a lot to do with it.
On your last sentance, funny you should mention this, I think I know exactly who you are talking about.
Great essay Anne. Well done. This culture of misogynistic vilification is evident, I believe your plan of ‘It Stops with Me’ is something I have been practicing, (and will continue to do so). The attitude of it reminds me somewhat of the ‘Lord of the Flies’ mentality.
Anne, I think what you’ve highlighted is the tip of the iceburg – it’s a sign of the general misogyny in Australia. For the rest of us, it’s usually just below the surface. Because this is politics, it’s treated as “anything goes”. We must try to take this opportunity to change the way people think – even women fall into the trap that it’s OK because it’s politics. In my view, neither misogyny nor the current gutter-crawling we see demonstrated daily in politics is acceptable. Until those in politics learn to behave like decent people we can’t expect to get a better class of people to represent us. I was really shocked to read of some of the comments you’ve heard and the dirt that is circulating. Great that you’ve shone a light onto it.
Anne, I am glad this has come to my attention. I knew there was a fair bit of ‘slagging off’ against the Prime Minister, but had no idea the extent or the degree of offensiveness.
How many of us would have the courage to continue in the face of this onslaught?
Doesn’t this Anne Summers have anything better to do with her time? She could spend valuable research time solving world hunger rather than exacerbate an obvious problem by drawing attention to all this disrespectful nonsense, and showing those explicit pictures. She is promoting the hatred, and her article has done nothing positive to support Gillard. I have no respect for Julia Gillard whom I observe to be a self promoting and untruthful person. I, along with numerous friends, have now departed from the Labor Party because of her appalling “leadership”. I note that Summers didn’t show all the similarly naked and crude Pickering cartoons of all the other politicians, because that would have made huge holes in her argument. People make fun of Gillard because of her ineptness, and her physical features and unbelievably weird accent – NOT because she is female. I agree that this is discourteous, but there is no gender bias or sexism involved. Get a life, Summers!
I agree Ruth!
Thank you for your informative page. I have a different opinion on offer here as I believe that this is a result natural selection. Something I will try and explain further. First things first, I do not believe that Australia’s response to Julia Gillard as PM started out as sexist at all. I believe that Australia still holds the grudge against Julie Gillard for her perceived betrayal of Kevin Rudd. Australians feel that they have been stuck with PM that they had not voted for. I believe that Julia Gillard is not PM material due to one main factor, nobody wants her in office, yet Australia does not want Tony Abbot either.
Politics is about people, it’s where the people have an opportunity to choose. Unfortunately after the big bang of Kevin 07, the lies, the turn around of Peter Garrett, Roxon’s view on privacy have made Australia disgruntled yet trapped in system that has no better alternative. Who can we choose from? Labor or Liberal? They both behave very badly.
Man or woman, Australia needs a leader they believe in. Neither Labor or Liberal deserve a go at the helm of government. Julia Gillard was not truly elected, she overtook the government using militia tactics by carefully planning the ousting of Rudd. Man or woman, Rudd was loved.
We cannot state that Australia is sexist because young liberals are making pornographic pictures, movies and insulting websites. Mr Abbott is indeed playing a very dirty game, however Australia is allowing it because of Julia’s conduct and blackflips.
I do not think this is an opportunity to bring attention to feminism, Julia is just as guilty as Abbott is. Julia released the swearing Rudd YouTube video and was busted writing her victory speech 2 weeks before Rudd was ousted. Julia ousted a very popular leader. The Labor party gave Australia what suited Labor at the time. Australia wanted Rudd.
Julia did not change the game plan, instead she displayed the real Labor values. Julia did not earn her stripes for the position of PM because she does not display the same values as Kevin Rudd. Australia liked Hawke, but loves Kevin Rudd.
Hatred is in the air for Labor and it’s getting worse. Tony Abbotts young liberals are doing a lot of damage to our country. If you behave badly, do not expect good results. Do you think Abbots below the belt campaigns will not be answered for? There is a opposite and equal reaction for everything. What we create today will bite us tomorrow. You can’t complain about stick pictures if the girls are volunteering to have photos taken. Let’s look deeper into things.
Until recently public debate has been mostly restricted to those with the power to influence limited media outlets. With the advent of the internet this unhealth state of affairs is finally being broken up. I can only think that this is a good thing, however reading Anne Summers speech has highlighted a down side, the thoughtlessness and foolishness of a proportion of the people who will express their views. I personally disagree with public displays of contempt for the Prime Minister irrespective of gender, ethnicity, etc. for obvious reasons but also because by implication it denigrates voters. So far I think we (the voters) have done pretty well given the limitations of the system.
Anne – I am an almost 33 year old woman. A business owner with a staff of almost 50. I work full time and my husband is a stay at home dad, who raises our almost 3 yo son. I am a feminists dream (not that I try to be).
I’ve read your first paragraph and you are WRONG already. Julia did not ‘change’ the carbon tax, like John Howard ‘changed’ his GST policy. John told his voters that he would bring in a GST, iIF he were voted in. He was voted in and therefore did so. Julia did something very diffferent. She said there would be no carbon tax under her government – people voted on that – and she did a complete 360. i’m not surprised people call her a liar. I do and I am a woman. So you are comparing apples to Oranges there! I didnt read much further than that – considering, your facts are not right.
Bitch, c$nt and other words like this are very normal vocab nowadays. If I said ‘bloody’ growing up – I would have got slapped across the head by my mother or father. Nowadays – ‘f$ck’ is like saying ‘and’. I think language is more a societal thing, than a Julia Gillard thing. Just logging onto social media – I am surprised at how many swear words I see. Even on daily status updates
I think people give Tony Abbot as much crap as they do Julia. I’ve heard females, in particular, make the worst comments about him as well – I dont think its much different either way.
I’m not a huge fan of Julia AT ALL. Nonetheless, she seems to be a pretty tough cookie, who does let anyone get her down (publicly anyway). Thats the way it should be. I like that I never hear her say ‘THESE MEN AND PEOPLE ARE PICKING ON ME BECAUSE I AM A WOMAN!!!’ She just gets on with it. Exactly like I do and many other women do as well. Its not always easy, but life in high powered positions aint easy. I wish people would stop bringing up topics like this. It makes women seem ‘weaker’ (like people need to STAND UP FOR HER CAUSE SHE IS A WOMAN!) Thats my opinion anyway.
PS – I was disgusted by what both Germaine and Alan said about her. Male or female – they were idiotic comments..
Many thanks Anne Summers- my mother is a great fan of yours- from the Whitlam era!
She says, and I agree, that you have done Australia a singular service by exposing the disgusting state of political discourse and reporting today,in your article.
We were shocked and horrified by Alan Jones’ vile contribution and following your interview with Mark Colvin and decided to read your article. It is brilliant and timely.
Let’s hope this is a turning point- we note the PM’s approval rating has recently risen above that of Mr Abbott’s.
Thanks again for a great piece of work,
Best regards,
dylan
Wow this is fantastic! I really appreciate you took the time, effort and the opportunity to produce such an important article and lecture. I think sexism, classism and racism are very much existent in Australian culture. Yet no one admits to producing, distributing or ‘like’-ing (on facebook) such material. Obviously, people are doing that and we know so because there is evidence that it has been produced. Such discriminations I mentioned above exist in such a covert and cusal way so we kow they exist and they are used and spread without much regard for those they hurt, and when there is a backlash, the maker pretends it was just a ‘joke’. i think the face that these dynamics occur are a complete joke in itself. Sorry for my little rant there, Anne, you did tremendous job!
Thank you for shedding light on the disrespectful and sexist treatment of our Prime Minister. I had no idea such derogatory material was in circulation and I am so disappointed in the members of our society who perpetrate or support such vileness. I will also say “It stops with me” and will calmly confront anyone I hear or read making offensive remarks. No one, male or female, particularly when they are in position of being leader of our country, should be subjected to such vilification. My admiration and respect for Ms Gillard have reached new heights now that I know what she has had to contend with, and despite this, she has still done a magnificent job of running the country and maintaining her dignity. Sadly, the same cannot be said of the Opposition Leader.
Thanks, Anne for articulating how I have been feeling for a long time – that the Prime Minister is being hounded by a group of misogynist bully boys who are intent on destroying her credibility and creating a horrible political climate filled with vitriol and bile, adding nothing to the political debate. Prime Minister Gillard deserves better, the Parliament deserves better, Australia deserves better. I will be passing your web link on to others.
It’s appalling to think that the leader of our country can be treated so badly. I do not support many of the PM’s policies but I’m constantly amazed (and disgusted) by the fact that so many people are completely unable to discuss policy without resorting to personal criticisms concerning the PM’s appearance or dress or a dozen other things that have nothing to do with policy or the way she does her job. Many times I’ve heard people criticise the fact that her partner Tim travels with her! Did Mrs Howard not travel with John? Surely in this day and age we’re not saying that the PM’s partner cannot accompany her because they aren’t married??? Yet this seems to be exactly what is being said. Thanks Anne for bringing this up.
This is a very positive response to an appalling, corrosive discourse. Thank you, perhaps the tide can turn towards a fresh civility.
Thank you Anne for your work uncovering the depth of the problem. I am somewhat a political junkie but I had no idea it was so bad. I will be doing whatever I can to support our PM.
I change the channel when Tony Abbott starts talking, and refuse to listen to TalkBack Radio in general, because of the vitriol and lies that spew from these peoples’ mouths. Their lack of respect is astounding. Their level of hate and misogyny is shocking! Thank you, Anne, for laying it all out. It not only stops with me, it starts with me. I will speak up about this issue again and again, and will not leave it to lie silent and rotting in the minds of my family or my friends.
Thanks Dr. Summer for this. is there anyway some of these people harassing the PM can be prosecuted? I am ashamed of this rubbish, and, proud of Julia’s presence in dealing with such hurtful material.
Karl
Excellent research Anne. The vitriol and mysoginist comments in the media: newspapers and radio, are bad enough, without even knowing about these pathetic Facebook pages. Agree completely with “it stops with me”. I’m sending your web link to all my friends.
I regularly listen to Parliament and hear Mr Pyne and Mr Abbott routinely vilify the Prime Minister. The same emotional vitriol is carried on and encouraged by several “shock jocks” on commercial radio who attract a bitter,but hilariously moronic group of listeners. My collective name for them is “Barnabies”! If politicians speak to a hypothetical Australian with an IQ of nine years old, then any Kindergarten would run rings around that lot. Yet if it were just the little nasty, bitchy boys who have it in for the Prime Minister then so be it, but the big hitters get involved, like the Murdoch press who also seem to look for any angle to discredit or humiliate the Prime Minister. I think the Prime Minister is a strong woman who is politically astute. She has lead a minority Government that has passed major legislation. These two points are facts. Another fact is the last election was essentially a draw. Mr Abbott and Ms Gillard competed to win the support of independents. She won and Mr Abbott lost. Just listen to a recent Mr Windor’s speech to obtain some insight into this. To those who say Mr Abbott is having a monumental “dummy spit” or he is a living “sour grape” then you may be right. I just think the Opposition has adopted a Goebbelian strategy of personal attack to promote propaganda that “he” ( Mr Abbott) is good and she( The prime Minister) is bad. A simple dichotomous emotional argument. Good versus evil, slogan versus reason. Sadly it works. PS I do not support any political party. If I was too vote it would be for Mr Abbott because he is a roads scholar and our dirt roads need regular attention. To have a roads specialist in Parliament would be a real bonus.
[...] the current controversy I read the following analysis of the role of sections of the lunatic right wing media in attacking Gillard by A… Its definitely worth a read. It was obviously ignored by Jones who plays a key role in the [...]
Thank you Anne,
After hearing you talk on 774 this evening I read at your speech. As a 50+ engineer working in industry I have seen the transition from control rooms lined with “stick pictures” to no tolerance for those images now. Interestingly it was male colleagues who were most offended in the past, and applied the pressure to make it unacceptable – the same with language. I once wrote to KMart and asked them why they were promoting one of the instigators of the Cronulla riots as a selector of a music collection sold in their stores – no reply of course. Now Mercedes Benz, Challenger and Woolworths are withdrawing advertising from Alan Jones – why did it take so long? He didn’t suddenly turn into an insensitive bully. You message is right – we need to stop tolerating or ignoring this behaviour now.
Thank you Anne for this in depth report about the horrific treatment that the Prime Minister has had to endure! Like you, I’ve been watching the behaviours you mentioned, but upon reading your speech I realized that there was much I was not aware of, and all of it is disgraceful, and as you so expertly said, very sad. I’ve been an advocate for the removal of sexist language and attitudes to women and girls over many years, starting with my own three now adult sons, and I feel a sense of deep concern by the instances you have laid out! So much for hoping attitudes have changed. Obviously not!
I intend to do all I can to ensure that people know exactly where I stand on this issue. I’ll start with my page on Facebook! Thank you so much for ‘going public’ in this way. Let’s hope we can change the ‘tone’ in the wider community, by standing up for equality and decency, even if we have to shame those who are engaging in this derogatory behaviour!
Thanks Anne for this erudite article – and for holding up the mirror for us all.
Well done Anne, Obvious it all been going on, I don’t do FB and thankfully have not received any of the offensive emails. I’d literally see red if I did. Alan Jones revolting comments hopefully is a catylyst to turn things around. I’m sick of gutter politics. Have always admired PM GIllard and will continue to, even though I’m a lapsed Labor now Green voter. Our Pm has been treated like I’ve never witnessed and just hope this latest is a climb out of the gutter due to the public response. We deserve intelligent political discourse not sexist and hateful rot! Hate media serves no purpose.
Thank you for your non-judgemental comments. It is sad that there are so many people in Australia today with so little sense of their self worth. Their vilification of Julia Gillard is only a pathetic attempt at self justification. Julia Gillard’s strenght in the face of this vile attack is to be commended.
A hundred thank yous to Anne. My circle of friends and me feel empowered by your observations.
Thank you Anne. It stops with me. I feel empowered to put the vile treatment if this bullied woman right, regardless of politics she deserves to be treated with respect.
Thank you Anne. This really needed to be said. For some time now my husband and I have been deeply disturbed at the vicious attacks on Julia Gillard, particularly on radio and in certain newspaper columns. One can only respect the Prime Minister more for her ability to continue to perform with dignity and calmness. This outrage must be stopped – it is our country’s shame.
Anne,
When I went to share your paper on Facebook, it defaulted to a thumbnail of the Larry Pickering cartoon. I unselected the thumbnail option, as I didn’t want to be publicising that image (particularly to people who may not appreciate the context or purpose). I am wondering if there is something you can do in the page set-up that would create a more appropriate default thumbnail.
Great paper by the way. Love your courage, dignity and grace.
Regards, Christine
Other than writing a purpose-specific API ourselves, there’s not much we can do from this end to control the Facebook app, Christine. You could avoid the issue by linking from the Vanilla version of Anne’s speech.
Or just choosing the ‘no thumbnail’ option ^_^
Thanks so to Anne Summers for telling it how it is – the atrocious, frightening stage that has been reached by Australian politics. Alan Jones should be sacked for his vile and vitriolic rantings. I am appalled in particular that Jones thought that the young Liberals would accept and condone such cruel vilification. The fact that the Liberals have such a close association with Jones is in itself extremely worrying.
my husband and I are outraged by the treatment our PM has been subjected to- it amounts to thuggery and is from the bottom up and top down. I found Tony Abbots response, to the appalling comments about the PM fathers death, to have been poor. The comments are far more serious than being ‘out of line’ and I can only imagine how this has also impacted on the PM’s mother as well as the PM.
I certainly hope the perpetrator of these comments is dismissed from his position – he really is a revolting man who the Liberal party would be wise to distance themselves from rather than encouraging him to sling mud for them.
I have been highly offended by some of the so called funny emails regarding Julia Gillard, doubly so as senders know I’m a Labour voter . I will be sending these links on to friends to spread awareness .
What a hellish thing to have to contend with on a daily basis, not only these vulgar images being sent to your personal email and circulating on various sites, but to then have to go into parliment to face these men in the opposition head on (who would no doubt know what you just got in your inbox), you can imagine how it could unnerve you. Julia puts on brave face, weather or not she is always feeling this way, is another question entirely. I think that Anne is probably right about the whole sordid campaign, it IS designed to undermine in worst possible way. It does make you feel sad thought, to think that these percieved ‘Gentlemen’ could resort to such debasing tactics to destablize an opponent, the Prime Minister no less!! Perhaps we should start calling her first lady Prime Minister, wouldn’t Tony Abbott love that. If you value your own personal dignity then ‘It stops with me’.
Thank You Anne for bringing this to our attention. I was not aware of any of this, and I am appalled and horrified to know it is going on. I will send this information to all of my friends and contacts to spread awareness about it. Regardless of opinions about Julia Gillard’s policies or performance as Prime Minister, sexist attacks are unacceptable, and demean all of us. It stops with me!
We all need to take a long hard look at the shameful manner in which politicians and the media conduct themselves. I think this all started with John Howard’s commentary against political correctness, which has now degenerated into bullying by the media and politicians, especially those like Alan Jones, Larry Pickering, and at times Tony Abbott. It is certainly not OK to let commentary from shock jocks like Alan Jones slide, and a hollow apology is just not enough to make up for such disgusting rhetoric that has no place in a decent and tolerant society. Jones needs to be put out to pasture to stop him infecting society with his intolerance because such behaviour, unfettered, promotes a sense in the community that anyone is fair game. and it is hight time that politicians in positions of influence, such as Tony Abbott, demonstrated positive leadership skills to improve our society. As it stands, the only leadership I can see from our politicians is on a downward slope. At best, the failure of our politicians to demonstrate leadership is tantamount to from the politicians complicity in muck-raking, bullying, and vilification. Time to do better!
Ama, Julia Gillard has an official FaceBook page which is easy to find. Last time I looked she had 132,000 supporters. Probably more now.
I am appalled by the extremely offensive comments made by so many people, especially by Tony Abbott. Is there a political initiative where we can support the Prime Minister? Is there a Facebook page specifically to support her?
Anne Summers is to be congratulated on bringing this shameful behaviour to the public’s attention. Behaviour like this is often on the periphery of one’s consciousness, until you almost get used to it. You notice the constant use of a Christian name instead of a title or surname and you notice the offensive placards but I was certainly not aware of some of these quite shocking instances of disrespect and cruelty.
Thank you very much for that piece. I have often said that I have never witnessed a Prime Minister being treated the way Julia Gillard has been treated by large sections of the media particularly the shock jocks and News Limited. I do agree that this systemic and calculated goes way beyond the carbon tax debate.
I seriously hope things turn around because Labor are doing some good things in the areas of health, education and infrastructure. One look at what the State Coalition governments are doing would demonstrate what life would be like under an Abbott led government.
Thanks for this work Anne. I have been saddened to see the office of Prime Minister so denigrated. “it stops with me” thanks for the empowering advice-it seems that Australia is living up to its reputation of misogyny well overseas-we have some growing up to do if we are to be taken seriously as a nation.
When will people relize Julia Gillard is the best thing that has happened to Australia! She is such a Lady. What i love about her she doesnt let any comments ruffle her when being interviewed. She can answer intelligently. She doesnt have to use crued words to answer, not like the opposition.How embarrising if we end up with tony abbott as prime minister. Love you Julia, keep up the good work!!!!
I have been saying for some time now that what is being done to Julia Gillard is same crucifixion that happened to Lindy Chamberlain so many years ago – and she ended up in jail giving birth!
And still there are many Australian’s who believe she killed Azaria!
Good grief, when will Australians become intelligent enough to see when a job is being done on someone by crew of bullies.
Australia – where men are men and sheep are frightened and where Tony Abbott walks around looking like he has some medical problem happening between his legs and where Corie Bernardi still holds a senate seat and all the pay and privileges despite his vilification of gay people.
We are great nation of haters without many brains.
it makes me question whether a vote for everyone is a wise thing.
Misogyny and racism rule here and that’s why I will leave the land of bevans at my first opportunity. I stayed for John Howard reign of lies and war, but not any more.
Thank you for making us all aware fo this appalling behaviour. I fear I have given the odd laugh at slurs against our PM because I am not particularly fond of some of her decisions. But that stops now. Any disparaging remarks will be based on politics, which is fair game, not gender or marital status or anything else. Anne’s speech has made me realise that, whatever else, Julia deserves immense admiration for keeping her head up and maintaining her composure in the midst of such vile treatment. I may not vote for her, but I will respect her.
Thank you, Anne, for finally bringing this to the attention of the media. Your comments are justified and we shall recommend that pople we know read your presentation. It was also pleasing to see the Law Faculty at The University of Melbourne also doing their little bit in condemning this shameful behaviour.
My male partner and I have long been disgusted at the comments made about the Prime Minister but we did not have a public platform where we could address this issue. We have also been saddened and wondered why more women in the public arena (in politics and industry) have not supported Ms Gillard vocally – some women, in fact, have joined in the attacks on her physical appearance rather than her performance.
We would like to think that our little bit of support in deleting derogatory emails and refusing to take part in jokes targetting Ms Gillard has had some impact on the people around us.
Anne – what a magnificent piece of research, writing and presentation. There is such a profound disconnect from the reality of Julia Gillard – a totally reasonable, clever, hard-working, achieving leader – from the very disturbing picture of here portrayed by the weird folk you describe. But what you have done is also dissect the more subtle sexism directed at her on a daily basis from, usually, members of the Federal Opposition and, of course, some sections of the media. That is particularly objectionable, because you dont have to go hunting for it on some vile web-site, it’s simply out there for everyone to hear and see. You cant escape it. This is a most important piece of journalism and I thank you for it.
Thank you Anne for your clear eyed view. I think that while Julia Guillard may not be the world’s best politican – she is a brilliant govenor and has managed to achieve some mighty results during her term in office, despite the on-going hate campaign from all sides of politics and the outrages of the shock jocks and their slimy ilk. I hope women will begin to stand behind her and feel the pride in her that many of us felt on the day she was made leader. I am also very encouraged to see her ratings are going up, as the facts of what she has achieved begin to sink in. Most things around her are froth and bubble- she is solid stone.
I was fortunate enough to be in the Q & A audience when Julia Gillard presented herself to answer any questions, just after her return to Australia where our Prime Minister addressed the US congress. What I experienced was a feminine, intelligent, interesting and interested woman who did not flinch at the hard questions. I came away feeling Australia was in good hands and have become very vocal in my support of our Prime Minister. I proudly observe as she repositions Australia to become a smarter and a more contemporary country which should and will lead by example. Julia Gillard is strong & gracious and I particularly like her description of the opposition as ‘noise’. I refuse to listen to this noise or any other noise and look forward to Julia Gillard being returned to power and continue putting good policies in place that will serve all Australians well in the future. There are many people like me which the general media refuses to recognise or give voice to. We’ll be voting and voting strongly with pride for our Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
I am outraged that our Prime Minister is treated like this. I am astounded that she has the courage to continue. I support the hard work she is doing
Anne, thank you for bringing all this evidence together. I had been experiencing concern for how the media and the Leader of the Opposition continually refer to the Prime Minister for sometime. However, I had no idea that the vilification had risen to this level! I never listen to talk-back radio; and I am not a great fan of outlandish areas in Facebook. I was also not aware to what level the politicians communicate had sunk.
I have concerns for the future, that younger members of our society are going to absorb this as acceptable behaviour. We are already being told that bullying is growing in our schools, that teenagers and younger children are videoing bulling and posting it on line. Well it is not surprising when they have leaders in the community setting such an example!
“It stops with me” as well.
Anne Summers points out tragically exactly how it is for powerful women such as Julia Gillard. As my colleague reminded me it was the same for former Victorian premier Joan Kirner, although the issue has reached new lows with the advent of Facebook and Twitter. I can’t tell you how disingenious it all feels (digusting just doesn’t cover it).
Thank you, Anne Summers, for collecting the evidence and making your case so convincingly. I agree with you about the widespread public sexism and misogyny in relation to Julia Gillard. I also found your workplace law approach particularly interesting and one that may be a way to restore respect to parliamentary behaviour in general. Whereto now?
Dear Anne,
Thank you for such a superb and enlightening article. I had no idea such vilification went on, especially in the land of commercial talk-back radio. I was aware of the shock-jocks to some extent, but you have opened my eyes and I will make sure that “it stops with me”. In Julia Gillard we have a Prime Minister of great stature who has a great mind, and I hope will be able continue to lead this country forward. Well done.
I have been disturbed for some time about circulating emails denigrating Julia Gillard. My close friends are ‘lefties’ but I do have two conservative correspondants, both of whom send me this sort of material. I hardly need to state that the emails go no further! What amazes me though is that my left-wing friends do not circulate material on Tony Abbott – a much more appropriate target. They are more interested in sending me information on various issues.
I am so glad that Anne Summers has brought this issue into the public domain.
This is the first time I have felt moved enough by something I have read to wish to express my gratitude and praise to you for what you have presented.
This continued harrassment and sexual and disgusting display of media attack is repulsive.
Thank you Dr Summers. It stops with me too.
Your words only serve to remind us of the Impotence of mainstream Australian media. What a conspiracy of silence. And not one politician has spoken out about those cartoons. Not one? Is this sort of discourse now so prevalent that it is viewed as normal or acceptable by our elected reperesentatives? The messages this tacit approval of such vile behaviour sends to the next generations of young women is dispiriting to say the least
Thank you Dr Summers for pulling these atrocities into the light. It brings tears to my eyes that the Prime Minister of our country had to put up with these outrageous emails and comments for so long. It is shocking to think that all of the Parliamentarians who also received Pickering’s despicable doodlings, did not cry “foul”! The members of the Press Gallery, too. SHAMEFUL! If Mr Abbott had even an ounce of the courage of the Ms Gillard he would have called for what it is long ago. Prime Minister Gillard has proven herself to be a much stronger leader than Mr Abbott.
“It stops with me”.
Thankyou for sharing your research in this excellent speech.
I am overwhelmed with sorrow for the Prime Minister. It is just too awful.
How low has our society become to tolerate this sort of insulting, demeaning, and sexist behaviour?
May the tide turn NOW!!!
“it stops with me”, too.
Thanks Anne. Thoughtful and thought-provoking as ever. How good to hear your voice give us perspective and a call to action yet again!
Julia only has to beat the politicians in the current opposition. The current opposition contains no politicians, only slime and slime-wanabees. She is the PM now, and for as long she wants the job. Long may she continue to lead the nation, long may Mr Abbott fester in opposition.
Dear Anne,
Where was your concern when Pauline Hanson was victimised in the late 90s?
I suspect your political leanings are the basis of your concern for our current Prime Minister, as opposed to rights at work for all people.
Thank you, Anne,for your expose of this cruel and misogynous material, that denigrates not only our Prime Minister, but is an insult to all women.
How are we to teach young Australians that online bullying is unacceptable,when such offensive material is being freely circulated by adults?
Hi Anne,im sending others to visit this site you can’t dismiss the truth
Dear Anne, I have long been concerned about the sexist and nasty treatment of Julia Gillard. No male PM would be treated so appallingly. Thank you for bringing this issue out into the open and for a wonderfully simple strategy to combat this campaign. I can’t wait for the opportunity to say “this stops with me”!
Thank you Anne for such a revealing article. I am a human resources consultant who advises companies on legal compliance and I totally agree that if such behaviour occurred in any other workplace setting it would be judged to be unlawful.
However despite all I have seen in my professonal career I have never seen gender vilification as severe as this. While the business world seems to be moving on from the abuses of the past, the world of politics seems to act as if the bad old days still exist.
Personally I am greatly offended that female politicians should be stupid enough to participate in such activity. As for Tony Abbot, how dare he hide behind the facade of Christian morality and yet encourage such disgusting behaviour. Pickering should be dragged before the courts. I am absolutely appauled and as a mother of four sons and an investment in the future of this country, I can say such a disgracefull world is not what I want for my sons and eventually their families.
Kind regards
Leonie
Thank you Dr Summers for exposing the depth of disrespect and mysogyny that the prime Minister has been dealing with. I have for a very long time been appalled at the deplorable level of hateful drivel thrown at Ms Gillard and have become, I am ashamed to say, the once interested person who read and listened to most political commentary, to one who now changes channels as soon as most (not all) politicians open their mouths.
With the opposition it is like watching a group of people who have been trained to speak so that no matter what the topic, they bring in their repetitive mantras within 2 sentences.
I believe the opposition + conservative elements + all the shock jocks..in fact that term allows them to get away with their vitriole and incitement to hate and violence ..have had a deliberate plan since day one to say everyday and in every interview and at every opportunity their disrespectful vicious and repetitive bile. You totally articulate the case for the AFP to pursue sexual harassment/bullying in the workplace and bring to mind my responsibility as share holder in my company Australia, to demand better of my board. Surely Mr Pickering could charged with stalker charges. Consequently I will adopt the mantra “it stops with me” and I will write to the Prime Minister and other politicians. I will also bring your speech to the attention of as many of my contacts as I can.
Thank you
Thank you, Anne, for your well researched and thoughtful essay here. It’s time we all spoke out against this level of abuse directed at our PM. The only way to stop bullying is to call it for what it is, otherwise the bystanders are as bad as the perpetrators.
The sexist attacks on the PM are being ridden like a trolling wave by the opposition leader and surprisingly, by female opposition MPs. I note Bronwyn Bishop and Sophie Mirabella’s (smiling) presence in full view of the infamous b*&*h posters in your article. Mt Abbott’s misogyny has been covered separately (see Susan Mitchell’s book Too Dangerous to Lead), and some of his other sillier stuff such as calling women “chairthing” are now coming to light. Overall it’s a nasty undercurrent that won’t remain as easily accepted now, thanks for your great work Anne.
Dear Anne, Thanks for an excellent article. I strongly agree with your comments and even more strongly disagree with those like “Lady McBeth” and “Katie”. I think that the quality of our country in general and politics in particular have been badly damaged by the scurrilous and vile campaign against our Prime Minister. The focus, and spotlight, seem to be shifting onto those who conduct this rubbish and truth and decency may yet (just) win the day. Articles like yours will help!
Kind regards,
Martyn Smith
Unfortunately facts speak for themselves and there is truth in the saying, “If you lie down with dogs you will get fleas.” This applies to Julia Gillard, just look at her record.
A fantastic presentation. As a teacher of senior Australian History I have been very interested in the views you expressed and have tried to inform my students of the very dangerous environment that a modern politician in Australian society must contend. I am relieved to know that there are many others out there that consider the actions taken by the shock jocks and more ‘respectable’ media as totally abhorrent and offensive. Of more concern is the complacency of ‘decent’ Australians. I think we are all guilty unless we get up and state unequivocally that such values are indecent and immoral. I try to do my bit by letting students know that it is wrong. I believe I am getting somewhere with them.
It is truly disgusting! I have though so for a long time
Thank you for this, is is well over due!
as a retired old labor voter pleased to find i am not on my own in thinking that people use the social media as a toilet wall. they feel they can vllify who they like with imunity then slink back in cubicle to fester and hate to there hearts content .a great article putting alight on those insects and watching them scurry away well done .
I don’t understand what is wanted
I would like to share this article on facebook but can’t just click on the link. The image attached to the story is by Larry Pickering and I don’t think anyone should have to look at it. You might like to change that image so that we aren’t promulgating the problem! I’ll just cut and paste the address instead…
Maddy, when you add the link, Facebook gives you the option of selecting the thumbnail image. You can scroll to the image of Ms Gillard near the top of our page, or choose to show no thumbnail at all. Hope that helps.
I have forwarded this to 25 people. There is much talk about some things being ” un-Australian,”,a term which needs further clarification. However, I will use the term for this disgusting and obscene denigration of our woman Prime Minister. I am in my 77 th year and have long been intrested in politics. I cannot recall such vicious abuse. I knew the abuse was bad but had no idea just how disgusting it really is. Why is there not further revelation in the media? I had read Anne Summers ‘ sanitised article in the SMH. Surely inciting people to assassination is a criminal offence!
PM and Sexist attacks
Thank you very much for opening this issue to the wider public debate. In my own small way I’ve been arguing the case for a long while, that the unprecedentedly nasty criticism of the PM was predominantly due to her gender. Right from the start of Gillard’s PMship, she was branded as that “treacherous woman” who ruthlessly stabbed poor Kevin (remember the micro-managing control freak we had quickly become disillusioned with?) in the back, in her lust for power. How quickly the media mongrels forgot how Keating replaced Hawke; how Howard replaced Peacock; how Peacock replaced Howard; how Hawke replaced Hayden; how Abbott replaced Turnbull; how Howard replaced Hewson; ad nauseum. But of course this time a WOMAN did it, & (in their bigoted view)that’s just not on. I work in an almost exclusively female environment, & I’m still stunned when I hear some women buying & regurgitating this misogynistic vitriol. Most however just seem to express resigned sadness. By all means, criticise the PM & her Govt for policy decisions, but you must argue an informed alternative.
Unfortunately, a strong vein of bigotry runs through parts of our population, seemingly driven by some incoherent rage &/or fear, which many of the self-appointed demigods in the political/media power game are only too willing to exploit. We are all vulnerable to it. I don’t think Australia is in any way unique on that score. But with the digital tools now at our disposal, it is too easy for the ratbags to reinforce each other, & embolden those demigods to make increasingly strident & vicious pronouncements, no matter how far removed from facts or reality. It really boils down to the getting & keeping of power,so in their distorted view, misogynistic attacks on the PM, whether subtle or overt, are means to justify their ends.
what a vindication of what Anne has just told us that the only negative comment comes from someone who hasn’t got the guts to use their name.
Anne Summers
Juliar Gillard is a “Criminal” & is about to be exposed re the AWU scandal.
What will you write about her when she is convicted of the crimes she has committed?
Dr. Summers, Am in complete agreement with your outrage at the treatment of our PM …sexist, low, unintelligent, base, ignorant and embarrassing. Why can’t her legal people sue over the really disgusting stuff. People might sit up and take notice.
Thank you Anne for picking up this baton. It is very timely that we begin to voice our disgust at the villification that has gone on. I have been shocked to the core by the vehemence and antagonism towards the Prime Minister. Can we go more public with this.
Thankyou Anne, for revealing the extent to which the fine person of our Prime Minister must brace herself in the cause of leading this country. I am both horrified and chastened by your revelations and chilled at the pathology which exists within our Parliament and among the public at large. I shall circulate this transcript to all the truly thinking people on my address list.
Perhaps if if the Labor PM and Deputy PM set higher standards in Parliament, political debate might be more edifying. The behaviour of those two makes that of the Opposition look restrained. In fact, in Labor circles, the PM’s “street fighter” persona is celebrated, and she is hailed as one of their best “performers”.
Also, it wouldn’t hurt if certain females of the left desisted from threats of sexual violence against senior opposition members of both sexes – but you musn’t have any knowledge of that, or you would have mentioned it in your article.
Dear Anne,
received the E mail today of your speech in Newcastle. Must be heartbreaking however, Julia, our Prime Minister is recovering in the polls this may be partly due to your E mail and her press address about her previous employment.
Never be surprised by people, the sad thing is that we do damage to ourselves in doing damage to others.
I feel sure that Our first female Prime Minister will lead us to victory in the next election. I hope your speech gets a good wide circulation this must surely help our cause. I have never read these comments previously, they were sent me by a more coservative friend who was also shocked by them.
I have met our PM in Freo she seemed like MHR Melissa Parke a good person.
Thanks Anne for shining this light. I was so enraged it took two attempts to spell my name correctly in the “Name” window! I had no idea that the Prime Minister was being subjected to such disgusting and discriminating attacks. All hail to Julia Gillard!
[...] Lecture which Dr Anne Summers AO delivered at the University of Newcastle on 31 August 2012. Or read a transcript here. I was amazed at the depth of the gender bias, perpetrated largely by the mainstream media, and [...]
Thank you Anne for publishing this! Men in leadership have a responsibility to be positive role models. Unfortunately some men in positions of influence in Australia are more concerned with pandering to existing prejudices than challenging and changing them. Their behavior is cowardly and lacking in courage!
Good evening,
Thank you Anne for your thoughtfull article on the treatment being served up to our elected Prime Minister.
Standards have slipped and you rightly point out the sexual harassment and bullying being championed by her opponent Tony Abbott (Married with daughters) his mysogonist cabinet, the repulsive Parrot, the Cab Driver and the disgusting Larry Pickering.
While unaware of much of this, I wonder if should expect any better? With such a racist undercurrent pervasive within Australian society, we haven’t progressed very far.
My father and mother taught me to respect women, my elders, my peers, new Australians and (funnily enough politicians)
Whilst unhappy about the way Kevin Rudd was removed, the behaviour of the press and the other bullying racists does not bode well for the future. As a father of daughters and granddaughters I hope they never receive such abysmal treatment.
Our Prime Minister has earned mr respect and my vote next year.
WOW what a tool for re-education/education! I have sent it to all the thinking people on my contact list. Let this speech go viral – circulate it! Thank you Anne
Thanks for shining the light on this appalling situation – I had no idea it had reached such depths.
Hi
I am suitably chastened by Anne’s thoughtful article and regret some of the offensive terms I used to describe the PM – “The Scone That Walks” and “The empty space with a caricature painted on it”. I will no longer use those terms to describe her but still have the urge to continue to lampoon Abbot. Every time he gets his Speedos in a knot his friend Rupert comes to the rescue. His “Investigative Reporter” Hedley helped to get Labour in Qld voted out by writing a legit series of articles, but they were magnified and amplified in Murdocspeak to accuse Bly of witchcraft – responsibility for the Floods of 2011. That was the king hit, not her dilatory privatisation policy. Result, we have a man that The Murd likes in power in Qld., a slathering incompetent who covers his tracks by provoking firefights but plays the media that counts like a well tuned electric guitar. There is a redneck inside political constituencies all over the world (alive and well in Russia when I visited early this year) and Queensland has the government it voted for, but whether it deserves it is yet to be seen. If it is part of a trend in our politics nationally then I might move to Russia where at least they are honest about it. I am serious. I was a youngster during the times of the Petersen regime when the ruling party thought it only natural to use the Police, especially the political police (Special Branch) and the then Drug Squad as their enforcers. If I try to buy a newspaper here I have three choices – the Courier Mail and the Australian , both Murdoch hacks, and a pile of “free” papers, mostly Murdoch owned. Ditto television – Murdoch or one of the other cartel members trawl and police that pond. Dissent online is easily buried by the volume of official sites and and the clamour of ignorance amplified by the medium. It is refreshing to have people like Anne Summers out there to tell the truth. She and the other writers of integrity have voices that remind me of clear bells, tolling bravely in the cachophony of militant philistinism where men and women can still be burned alive at the figurative but very real stake of our times, the Media.
Thank you Anne I am sending this to many. It is heartbreaking that our Prime Minister has been and is still being subjected to these vile insults. I think she has been such a wonderful example to all women, she has remained calm, polite and totally professional in the face of the cruel behaviour of the ignorant,crude and the worst example of Australians.
and these are the politicians speaking out against bullying on FaceBook. Thank you Anne for bringing this altogether. Lucky Tony Abbott is a Christian – I dread to think what he might have said if he wasn’t such a wonderful example of Christain values. Why would any decent person ever want to go into politics. Thank you Anne for this – we have sunk so low
I kept going til the end and then I didn’t know whether to cry or hit the bottle.
I am doing both,
Thank you for the article,
Dear Anne, Thank you for highlighting as others have said, this relentless bullying and sexist wankery. The level of disrespect is woeful. Doesn’t the Human Rights Commission protect workers from this kind of harrassment? The offenders might familiarise themselves with those instruments … instead of the blunt instruments of sexism and rhetrickery. If this is how we treat our Prime Minister what hope does the average citizen hold for basic respect … and then there’s asylum seekers or non citizens, and so it goes. Thank you Anne.
I am appalled at what you have written because I had no idea of the extent of this cruel behaviour, my respect for Julia Gillard has only increased by understanding what she has to go through each and every day. Who the hell is Pickering anyway, a washed up cartoonist. He can go jump. Go Julia I voted for you before and I will vote for you again.
Dear Anne,
Thank you for this speech. I’m glad you delivered it at a university. The next Taxi driver who I come across ranting Alan Jones style about ‘HER’, I will ask to stop with the hatred of women, or I am getting out of the cab. ‘It stops with me’ is a great idea.
Genevieve Kelly NTEU.
Thank you Anne for bringing this form of systematic bullying and sexual harrassment out into the open. How can we ever teach our young people to treat each other fairly and with respect when this type of behaviour is perpetuated by their parents and condoned by our leaders on both sides of politics?
I have received many of these vitriolic and hateful forwarded emails and refuse to pass them on. Furthermore, I lose respect for those who have sent them to me. In such difficult political and economic times and in the face of such insulting and un-enlightening attacks, our Prime Minister has exhibited remarkable fortitude, dignity and humility. One can understand Tony Abbott’s great disappointment at missing out on the top job and his desperate hope to force an early election, but his constant attacks on the PM and the relentless vitriol from opposition supporters has to stop: it stops with me. I’ll be forwarding Dr Summers’s speech to all my contacts and exhorting them to remember the Aussie ideal of fair play. What sort of Australia do we want to live in?
Thank you, Anne Summers, for your speech. I have been living outside of Australia for two years but closely follow the current Australian political scene via various websites. I knew the personal vitriol against PM Gillard was appalling but did not realize the shrill, ugly and unrelenting extent of it until watching you give your speech, courtesy of YouTube. I am due to return home in a year’s time but frankly my level of enthusiasm for returning has waned somewhat. For all our progressive social changes in recent decades, how is it that Australia seems to have slid back into a sexist, misogynist mindset To misquote Alan Jones: the Neanderthals are wrecking the joint. Are some of us so terrified of seeing a woman in the top job that we react by endlessly pilloring her in the lowest, most degrading way possible? Why is female power still such a threat?( And please don’t anyone tell me it’s because of the bloody carbon tax or usurping Kevin Rudd!) This behaviour fills me with deep shame to be an Australian.
I’ve been out of the country for over six months and I am deeply shocked by reading Anne’s lecture. I knew of the comments made by shockjocks like Alan Jones and his ilk, but had no idea that the the level of abuse had increased so dramatically. The so-called cartoons are a real shock! Thank you Anne for making me aware.
[...] of media that sum up the need for us battle sexism in all its forms perfectly. If you’ve not read Anne Summers X-rated version of Her Rights at Work – you must and this incredibly cartoon from The First Dog on the Moon over a Crikey.com is the [...]
Thank you, Anne, for bringing this to the public’s attention. I did not know that it was so widespread and noxious. It makes me wonder about the Australian character, the one we all hold so dear: the belief in the fair go. Perhaps it’s just a myth.
It is indeed a sad day for us all (women especially), when a Prime Minister of our country is subjected to all sort of vitriol, insult, degradation and abuse from relatively sound of mind people. Thankfully not all the population of Australia feel this way. We give Fairness a go, We give credit where due, We have learnt a lot from Ms Gillard (Prime Minister) – SHE has guts to stand up to the likes of Alan Jones etc people who are also in power and who try to sway people into hatred of their fellow persons. I sincerely hope that we never have an Abbott government, (wonder how he feels being called LIAR) he has no aptitude for governing nor the knowledge and with his absolute inept team we would be at the mercy of everything negative and the destruction of Australia as a celebrated country. Ms Julia Gillard for Prime Minister.
“Prime Minister bashing” has been stopping with me for some time now and I have taken the brunt of derisive and critical comments from some of my family and friends. I weep for the direction in which Australia is heading and hope Anne Summers’ brave speech will begin the return journey to sane, compassionate and mature thinking by our politicians and citizens.
I am re-reminded that from every sector that ‘ having an opinion’ is immediately cast into a bad light by a contemporary society.
A contemporary society that doesn’t seem to have a workable,contemporary flexible tolerance for the ebb and flow of discussion.
And, it’s more than a worry when there is such a clampdown rather than understanding that plenty of times agreeing to disagree allows further discussion.
Forget lumping everything into a list, a facebook like, right or left,or hide it under culture,nature, religion or politeness, the discussion stifling under various guises just versions of “shut up and tut tut” is hardly worthy of a wider intelligent and largely older population-”telling each other off” is hardly effective.
There is more to people who question and hope to find answers. There is nothing to apologise for!
Australia is not a communist country YET, so why create an uncomfortable environment for discussion to “die a death” in.
Especially with hushed and quiet tones.or academic or psuedo academic language.
It doesn’t hide or alter the narrowing of intelligence via the act that “demonizing opinions per se”, is the new way of “being intelligent”.(without thinking).
I never expected a woman to exhibit such misandry towards a man who made her Deputy Prime MInister, to not acknowledge his role his faith in her,her ignorance in excluding him from the party he had started to help reinvent the party with public consciousness. to allow major newspaper (the australian) to abuse him by calling him ‘autistic’.(and not even the autistic society felt they could say- so what is wrong with being autistic?- such as the PC media being so into PM JG damage control no matter the cost to any one else).
And why aren’t those inciting violence and disrespecting out PRIME MINISTER being hold to account???
What a disgrace this attack on a female politician! And we criticise men in other cultures for their treatment of their females? SHAME FIBERALS, SHAME!!!!
I will be voting for the HON JULIA GILLARD! GO GIRLS!
Julia is a national treasure, as are all hard working and honest politicians.
I have never let anyone get away with vilification of the PM (or anyone else) when they are in earshot. I find casual denigration is just the worst sort of emotional thuggery.
Thank you Anne
A note for all of us latte drinking unctuous lefties!
I have also recently been examining many of my own and my friends reactions to the right wing.
I find that there is an element of habitual denigration also lurking there.
This also is counterproductive to the cause of rationality.
Although the denigration of the right is much more guarded, the same metonymic references are often there to act as dog whistles for those with repugnant views. We need not fall into this ‘response’ rhetoric.
It has utterly debilitated the contemporary debate in the US.
Please do not allow it to happen here.
(Although a bit of casual denigration is very difficult to avoid when considering the statements of many of these cultural thugs.)
“repugnant views”
You need to be re-educated in Diversity Training to accept that all views are equal in the multi-culinary experiment.
Report to the Gulag tomorrow.
I have just read this article and it confirms what it is to be Australian to me in 2012:
-you have to be racist – yes we are racist
- you have to hate foreigners -unless they bring in tourist money
- you still refer to women on the basis if their looks – miss australia in this day and age
- you cannot stand successful and rich women -who are independant and competent at what they do
- you think joking such obscenities with your ‘mates’ is okay about our pm – take a hard look at yourself
- when did death threats become the norm in social media?
- i am embarrassed to live here, and i was born here
- i am proud to have Julia as our first female prime minister
- if you are going to argue politics and policies, do so from your head up – its called a brain
- tony abbott, karma will get you
I am in awe of the personal strength of our Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Thankyou Anne Summers for putting the spotlight on the undercurrent which is like a cancer sapping our collective dignity. I have admired Ms Gillard since before she took office and have never wavered despite the complex situations she has faced, and the difficulty of her position. Being a country of “old” and “new” Australians throws up diverse focus groups. Misogyny is not just restricted to “old” Australian blokes, but is alive and well in “conservative” new immigrants. The values upon which Australia has flourished must be defended. Horrible though this topic is, it must be addressed. I was naive. Thankyou for your courage. “It stops with me”
[...] was reading an article by Anne Summers during the week entitled “her rights at work” (see here), which explored the obnoxious and sexist way in which the Australian media, the opposition and the [...]
I don’t know anything about this person Pickering, but saw a couple of examples of his cartoons in this article. Is there no way he can be ‘banned’ from posting obscene pictures of the PM of our country?
I was not happy when Kevin Rudd was ‘sacked’ – he did an extraordinary job getting the Labor Party into government – but I was willing to allow that he could not govern. Ms Gillard has shown herself to be extremely capable, public-minded, and able to get her policies through a marginal parliament.
I am ashamed that so many Australians would contribute to embarrassing her and her position and our standing in the world!
The misogynist behaviour of members of the opposition, Larry Pickering , radio commentators and others is offensive to Ms Gillard and also to the ofice of prime minister. If as Ms Summers states cartoons and emails are being sent to members of parliament – why hasn’t the matter been dealt with? Ms Summers has pointed out the fact that this material contravenes laws – yet no-one until now has been concerned.
I am deeply ashamed that such vileness exists our society.
I wrote to Facebook and requested they remove Larry Pickering’s page based on the reasons you discuss above and they wrote back refusing to do so. Can we put through another request from people in higher places?
stunning and incisive piece as usual Anne! I would be more than happy to contribute to a POSITIVE, wide ranging, grass-roots campaign around a fantastic and gifted woman – how does one start this campaign? We ABSOLUTELY need to stem this hideous tide of hatred. Any thoughts? The alternative Prime Minister is just too hard to even contemplate.
What is happening to Gillard is shocking and appalling. Thank you for writing this Anne. What can we do to get Sex Discrimination legislation to apply to politicians? It seems absolutely crazy that this legislation should not apply to specific job categories, such as PM? I think it is crucial to the achievement of equality in our Parliaments that the basic right of women, and men, not to be harassed and discriminated against on the basis of gender or other characteristics be protected in ALL jobs, including those in politics. Witnessing our Prime Minister (having to) put up with this behaviour sends a terrible message to women around Australia who face discrimination or harassment in the workplace. If even the PM doesn’t get justice in these situations, what hope do ‘ordinary’ Australian women have. Proper rights and justice for our female politicians (regardless of our political views) is more likely to lead to proper rights and justice for all Australian women.
Thanks Anne. I too have been living in blissful ignorance of the extent of this abuse.
I have, however, been unhappy for a long time about the way mainstream journalists and politicians refer to the prime minister. Calling her by her first name demeans the office she holds. When talking about her in her capacity as the prime minister of Australia, I believe they should show more respect to the office by calling her ‘Ms Gillard’. I have always admired the way in American culture, it seems common practice to show respect for the holder of the highest office in the land by calling its incumbant “Mr President”.
I would dearly like journalists and politicians alike to show some leadership in this regard. If they started with just that, it might bring back at least some respect.
I was disappointed with the usurping of Kevin Rudd and mightily angered at what I figured was the overpowering bastardy of the meddlesome, power-hungry NSW Labor Loopy Fanatical Right in the Rudds sacking and Gillard’s rise to the prime seat at the hands of such perceived treachery and was further disenchanted with Labor’s capitulation on the Mining Tax. Still, after reading this article I am overwhelmed by the venom and vitriol of her critics. Shocking. It comes down this…the enemy of my enemy is my friend. And anyone that resorts to such despicable and slanderous images and language to insult and assault any women let alone a sitting Prime Minister is my enemy. The US has shock jock rightwing misogynists and gynophobes like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck…we have our own despicable clones/clowns in Ray Hadley and Alan Jones. Thank you Anne Summers.
I am so distressed that fellow Australians are guilty of this behaviour towards another person. I have always liked and respected our prime minister Julia Gillard. The dignified manner that prime minister Gillard has conducted herself in respect to this dreadful issue has increased my respect for her. I also respect the values that our labor government represents such as health,education,disability support,environment.
Thank you Anne Summers for bringing into the open the misogynistic treatment of our wonderful Prime Minister. No male PM would be able to put up with the abuse and unwarranted vitriol that she has endured throughout her reign. It just shows that those who denigrate, abuse and spit their venom have very little in common with highly intelligent people. Those who resort to filth, gutter verbiage and obscene depictions are not very well and need professional help. Julia will win the next election in spite of these vicious attacks. Julia Gillard is to be admired for her courage and grace in dealing with, what truly is, reprehensible and disgusting behaviour. Some people in this country need to grow up and think about whether they would want their daughter to be subjected to this horror.
Howard realised the benefits of GST and campaigned to introduce it. He won, he introduced it. Juliar said NO carbon tax if I am elected. She cobbled together a govenrnment and look what she gained. Backflipped making her campaign a lie. Nuf said
Yes and we know Abbott would have done the same thing had he been offered the job. Remember he would do anything anything to get the job. Or have you forgotten that Mr Cohen. He once said that the way to reduce carbon emissions is to put a price on carbon, or haven’t you seen that video. Nuf said.
How sad it is that we as Australians should be treating our fellow humans in this way.
I like Julia Gillard and admire the job she is doing.
I didn’t know the extent of it – which is no excuse as I should have researched it for myself. I had heard of the sexist and misogynistic campaign against her but didn’t check it out. My heart goes out to Gillard. Let it stop with me.
Thank you so much for speaking out. I thought I was the only one thinking these thoughts. Amanda
I wept. I felt physically sick. I knew it was out there but not to this extent. I support Prime
Minister Gillard. I do understand the immense challanges. thanks for the exposure. Helena
But now that I have put the link on my Facebook page, I also have the Pickering cartoon on my facebook page. How can I remove the picture? My non-English speaking friends will be wondering what message I am sending.
Hi Jennifer, there are a couple of options. When you set up the link, FB would (should) have offered you the option of selecting the thumbnail and the plain photo of Ms Gillard should be an option. The other option is to opt for no thumbnail at all. FB being what it is, I don’t think you can edit the post once it’s published, but you can delete it (look for an X at top right of the post) and replace it with one that has a non-offensive thumbnail. Hope that helps.
When I read Anne Summers piece all I wanted to do was cry. Where are the boundaries? Where is the respect? And most importantly what do we tell our daughters? Don’t be ambitious. Don’t try so hard because if you succeed you will be vilified by men. I only hope that the silence will soon be broken about the vile people out there who spread such hate.
This all confirms my fear that the quality of political debate was debased during the Howard years and will take a lot more than a heartfelt speech but no action by Malcolm Turnbull to recover. Now that Pickering has been outed, and we know that he sends his ‘work’ to politicians regularly, it must be time for Tony Abbott to put the brakes on and to make it clear that he does not condone this kind of commentary and to demand that it stop. So far, the silence is deafening.
I hadn’t seen the worst of it. I knew about Alan Jones’ nonsenses and the general run of negative comments, witless cartooning ( why haven’t a real cartoonist, like Rowson ); eg the endless carping, monotonous sledging against the PM, Labor in general and the Greens.
Because I have many American friends on FB, I follow Dr Summers in relating Julia Gillard’s treatment to that afforded President Obama, another outsider, whose similar treatment at the hands of rednecks, hard right puritans and slimy tabloidists is the only possible contemporary parallel in illogical, infantile and innane viciousness and calculated hazing.
I see the treatment of both as a sign of the times, which seem to have relapsed to the ‘fifties and ‘sixties.
I am reading this from NZ, where I now live, it often hurts me the attitude that NZers have towards Australians BUT this article confirms that stereotype, base, gutter snipes. I am ashamed to be an Aussie when such a dignified and hard working intelligent leader is being treated like this, NO ONE DESERVES THIS.
Thank you Anne for this lecture. It has been empowering for me, specially the ‘It stops with me’.
For those who are suggesting that Anne has been 1 sided with her examples of women being denigrated because they are women, take a look and a listen to how Gina Rinehart is treated, as compared to male mining magnates and other extremely wealthy men.
The male magnates make as outrageous comments as she does. They are around the same age, ‘Anglo’, and appear to be of similar health and physical build. It is mostly Mrs Rinehart who gets pilloried for her appearance, before her ideas and thinking. The men get taken down their for their thoughts and opinions.
She is not celebrated as well by those people who put exceptionally wealthy people on pedestals, for being one of the wealthiest people in the world. Remember, some people equate wealth with good character.
During the early to mid 80s, we had men who were seen to be very dodgy and subsequently some of them were prosecuted, convicted and sent to gaol. These men were celebrated and admired, even though they were thought to be crooks. There are no allegations of dishonesty actual or insinuated against Gina and yet she does not get the accolades of even those males or for that matter, a male of good character in her situation.
In defence of Anne she did mention that the same treatment would most probably be heaped on a woman Prime Minister, no matter what her party was. Anne did mention Julie Bishop as Deputy Prime Minister.
Sexism is not necessarily gender based. Some of the most vehement sexist put downs that I’ve heard and read have come from women. If those same comments had been uttered or written by a male, he would have been rightly, effectively and efficiently shot down in flames, hence the title of Anne’s popular book ‘Damned Whores and God’s Police’ (no I haven’t read it, but it is on my too read list) says it all.
I came to Australia in 1964 as a boat person and experienced the very laid back, fair go for all of the average Australian. The males were misogynist and many other ‘ists’, but society did believe in that ‘Fair Go’ principle. We’ve known, since the last election, that the political and media circles have denigrated the Prime Minister, but had no idea it was/is to this extent. We don’t listen to the radio ‘shock-jocks’ so were unaware (except through Media Watch) of the extent of the vitriol. Thank-you for empowering us, the ordinary people, to try to stop this continued attack on the Prime Minister. Australia is a migrant nation – what example are we setting to the latest arrivals? Thank-you
I admire Julia Gillard more and more every day. She is showing our young women good things- superhuman strength against the odds unflappability tenacity and elegance under fire. History will be kinder than we have been. Thank you Anne for having the courage and energy to research this subject so thoroughly in preparation for your lecture. This illustrates so clearly how much we need great journalists to hold the mirrors up to us – now we just have to do Something. Suggestions?
My heart weeps, will my baby girl still have to endure this blatant sexism?
Old enough to have been closely involved, I remember clearly the common reaction back in ’79 to Australia’s first female main-stream-airline pilot being ‘accepted’ (because she had the guts to take on old Reg Ansett in the courts, and won. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_Lawrie).
Debble was lucky that there was no ‘net back then, because she was as soundly and roundly defamed and demeaned by all and sundry — I’d estimate by about 55-65% of society — as P.M. Gillard is today. I was shocked then at the general misogyny, an attitude usually ascribed to males, but which was vehemently demonstrated by a remarkable range of women of the time, as now.
I developed a ‘standard test’ to see where people stood, employing a double bias comparison:
“You are at an African outback airport. You have the choice of two Boeing 727s, both flying to your destination. One 727 is crewed by an all female crew, the other by an all Black crew. Which flight would you take?”
I was disturbed to have only one person, a flying instructor, choose the female crew. Why, I asked. “because the best pilot he had ever taught, by a factor of about 25%, was Susie W, at Parafield, SA.”
I believe currently there may be a small element of aspecific -anti-Gillard reaction, but, underneath it all it is that she has lanced Australia’s deeply misogynistic core by taking command of the situation. I guess this behaviour dates back to our very early years of extreme gender un-balance in society, and the behavioural changes that were necessary to maintain some form of (damaged) social intercourse.
I mean: is there another country where a grown man mourns the loss of a mate — who is a male?
Lot’s of damage here, and Ms Gillard is the latest, and strongest, recipient of the underlying terror of . . . .
I shan’t say the word.
dear anne; australias dirty little secret is out…it is still a “man’s country” …thank you for reminding me that there is no such place as a post feminist world….regards lorraine
[...] Version 2 contains the unexpurgated R-rated version of her speech. Please be aware it contains foul … [...]
Just wanted you to know I wholeheartedly endorse the comments by Josh. It was a sad day for women when our first female Prime Minister turned out to be Ms Gillard.
I LIKE AND ADMIRE JULIA and have always done so. I am TOTALLY angered by the treatment she endures and am blown away by her courage and fortitude, to the extent that I can no longer bear to engage with the news media. Abbott gets too many huge soundbites of vicious diatribe with not a cohesive argument EVER. To me he is a bullying, small minded, empty headed twerp. I have to admit that I WAS RELIEVED when Julia assumed power from Kevin Rudd. Although I liked him, to me he seemed to have lost the plot and I feared for the future of his government. With all of his majority he failed to show the leadership that gets bills through that should have been achievable. I fail to see why Julia is perceived as a failure. Just travel overseas to appreciate how well our economy is doing compared with other Western Nations (I have just returned from six weeks in the UK, Ireland and Eastern Europe, where we are considered enviously). Julia has introduced a National Curriculum (which John Howard tried but failed to achieve); the schools in our area all sport new buildings that they use on a daily basis and make available for public use (they haven’t had new buildings in years); the Carbon Tax is a good thing – just experience the air pollution in other countries to appreciate what it is preventing; the NBN is a world class achievement; the mining tax makes good sense – I’m tired of exploitative magnates using our national assets to build their personal wealth. Despite her small majority she has beavered away and managed achievements that Rudd failed to get through. She is our country’s best asset. John Howard didn’t lie – he just restated his lies as ‘non core promises’, but that seems to have been totally excusable for reasons that totally evade my sense of rationality.
GO ANNE SUMMERS!!!!!
Congratulations Anne Summers. An important and overdue subject. Penny Wong said once on Q&A, “I am quite resilient, but nowhere near as resilient as the PM”. There has been a marked change of culture – loss of dignity, etiquette, respect and identity – since social media has made it normal to be anonymous and so easy to indulge in behaviour you just know your parents/grandparents would never have condoned. We who are concerned have to learn to harness this lightning-fast medium to fight back effectively. Rampant misogyny is absolutely frightening.
I have been concerned for some time about the media and internet portrayal of Julia Gillard, but I had no idea it was so prolific. Surely there is a case for a class action against one or two of the worst offenders, on the bases as outlined by Anne Summers in this amazing lecture.
How can one individual withstand this continuing tirade of words and cartoons? It is beyond basic decency. I wonder if my life story, including the skeletons in the cupboard, was put out there how would I deal with it? Or any of you? How would you like it?
I just hope that Julia Gillard continues as PM for a long time to come because she works so hard while the opposition members seem to have wasted the last two years in attacking her, thinking that they would be in government long ago. They will never retrieve that lost time to create any decent policies.
What a shame that these upholders of “free speech” have forgotten, or maybe never understood, that civility is a responsibility of civilised human beings. These sad creatures demean our heritage and all those who try to uphold standards that make life tolerable.
I’m just an ordinary old Australian bloke, but reading this material makes me incredibly sad that certain people can demean themselves to such a low level while vilifying their fellow Australians in the name of their democratic rights. Such people don’t deserve the “rights” they take so much for granted.
Thank you Ms Anne Summers
This is certainly a discussion worth having, and Dr Summers usefully shines a light on some very ugly misogyny. But I’m not convinced that Ms Gillard’s low popularity rating or the level of vitriol aimed at her is all down to sexism. You can’t properly examine Gillard’s Prime Ministership without looking closely at the woman herself and how she came to power. The nature of the coup that toppled Kevin Rudd left Gillard forever tainted. Many who would liked to have celebrated Australia’s first female PM felt uncomfortable with the illegitimate way she acquired power, and always will. Then came the flip-flopping and the wavering, not just on the carbon tax, but on numerous key policies. The endless dithering over asylum seekers, for example. Poor policy and inept media management made her look weak and indecisive for months on end. And then there is the personal style she brings to her leadership – the robotic speech pattern, the dead-eyed stare, the patronising tone with reporters and members of the public. She’s been a gift to satirists. So, yes, she’s been widely lampooned and demeaned. But so has every PM and Premier in the media age (think of Max Gillies’ parody of Hawke or the quite justifiably lacerating portraits of Joh – who was almost always “Joh”, never Bjelke-Petersen). By all means, let’s identify the sexism and shame the offenders. But let’s not pretend that it’s largely sexism that Julia Gillard is not beloved as PM.
You are wrong, Josh, when you call Gillard’s attainment of the top job ‘illegitimate’. The people in Australia do not elect the leader of the Government; we elect our representatives in our electorates that we think best represents us. Once a government in formed, a leader is elected by the representatives that we elect: the public has not, and has never, had anything to do with this. If the ruling party, or parties, want to change their leader, they hold their own ballot. That’s what happened. Rudd was the leader of the party that was able to form government. However, despite his popularity with the public, he was a dreadful manager of people, autocratic and wasteful, and the government chose a better manager, and Gillard’s better management is evident by the amount of important legislation that the Government, under her leadership, has got passed, despite its minority status. Our leaders deserve respect if you agree with their politics or not.
There’s no evidence that quality of political debate is any better or any worse than it has been.
I began to sense the author was losing the plot here:
“And that is the deliberate sabotaging of the prime minister by political enemies, who include people within her own party, and who are using an array of weapons which include personal denigration, some of it of a sexual or gendered nature, to undermine her and erode her authority.”
I felt that the author was trying to paint a picture of a heroic Julia Gillard, being brought down by the oppressive patriarchy. Ultimately, this suggests that Australian voters are incapable of making their own decisions regarding their leader’s performance. Furthermore, it’s sexist, it implies that Julia couldn’t possibly make these mistakes on her own, and is so ineffective at her job as to not be able to achieve anything without remit to the patriarchy.
Summers makes a point that Gillard is subjected to offensive material from the internet. So the fuck what? What’s her point? That people on the internet should be nicer to each other? I think the author needs a reality check there.
Implying that all these sexist actions come from some monolithic patriarchal conspiracy, borders on absurd at best. It reads like cheap Naomi Wolf – which is saying something.
Also Ms. Summers tries to imply that the denigration of Julia is unparalleled in the history of Australian politics, but I know that this is simply not the case. The vitriol poured out against John Howard & Paul Keating was just as bad, if not worse. Keating was mocked for crying after losing power, and Howard was routinely ridiculed for his appearence (Mr. Sheen anyone?).
Summers commits a fallacy by association, people who agree with the Opposition and choose to express their views … less than politically correctly, are all lumped together as part of this monolithic male conspiracy. It simply doesn’t wash.
The part about this speech that I find utterly offensive however, is that Gillard somehow deserves preferential treatment, despite being an utterly mediocre leader. Summers tries to narrow Gillard’s electoral woes purely down to the carbon tax. Aside from the fact that the carbon tax is utterly woeful policy, Summers again plays the guilt by association card. If you’re opposed to the carbon tax, clearly you are a sexist Neanderthal whose opinion counts for nothing.
The truth is that Gillard’s policy performance, perhaps with the notable exclusion of the NDIS, has been shockingly ham-handed. Her backflips over the asylum seeker issue has costs lives, the poorly negotiated MRRT exposes the Australian economy to shocks in the commodities market, & distorts behaviour of actors within that market. She has absolutely gutted Defence. The list goes on. Can I simply not agree with her without being labelled sexist? According to Summers, no, because by association, I am automatically opposed to her because she is a woman.
This leads into another point. Summers commits ergo ad propter hoc, Gillard had excellent approval ratings as Deputy PM, and they fell after her first year in power, therefore her drop in approval rating was a result of the leaks in her government. Never mind that Gillard barely scraped a government together, or that a wide majority still vehemently disagrees with the way she came to power. It was the sexist patriarchal conspiracy’s fault! Talk about letting a politician off the hook.
Overall Summers has a point, we shouldn’t pass on sexist material about anyone. But it is so far removed from reality as to be completely useless. Why stop at stop being sexist about JG, we should all just get along? No, this article is just attempting to hide Gillard’s innumerable failures behind the curtain of political correctness. We live in a country, where free speech was once inalienable right. Somewhat ironically, the Labor government has been rolling back this right, and the author attempts to cover for this rather mediocre leader’s performance with guilt by association.
This Federal government cannot protect the borders form anyone who wishes to enter illegally (in fact, law breakers are assisted), cannot stop the sale of lands soil (not as a failed cotton business) to the Chinese Communist Party, cannot inhibit foreign vacuuming of the southern seas by foreign fishers.
The tax-creator would greatly benefit from such an ineffectual plethora of tax-consumers, the Federal Failure, being replaced by outsourcing the administration of the country to an Indian logistics company. If Australians want to decide on any of those three topics above, they could vote democratically by sms. Within 24 hours the result could be known rather than the years of hand-wringing and slacking off on 6 week holidays to avoid making decisions.
You are incorrect about Labor being ironically against free speech. The Thugocratic oppression of expression is a fundamental part of their tool-kit. Ask anyone who has lived under Stalin, Mao & Pol Pot or the Attorney General Roxon who wants to steal every Australians letters and calls. Presently, Australia is becoming a Frankfurt School Marxist/Politically Correct society.
“Ask anyone who has lived under Stalin, Mao & Pol Pot… Presently, Australia is becoming a Frankfurt School Marxist/Politically Correct society.”
What on earth are you on about?
I think your stream of consciousness has taken a speedy flight. Try landing back to the real world, Philip!
A. Botio,
I wouldn’t like you to be a ‘Useful Idiot’ for the subversion of Western society (Yuri Bezmenov definition). Does any of this sound familiar:
1. The creation of racism offences.
2. Continual change to create confusion
3. The teaching of sex and homosexuality to children
4. The undermining of schools’ and teachers’ authority
5. Huge immigration to destroy identity.
6. The promotion of excessive drinking
7. Emptying of churches
8. An unreliable legal system with bias against victims of crime
9. Dependency on the state or state benefits
10. Control and dumbing down of media
11. Encouraging the breakdown of the family
One of the main ideas of the Frankfurt School was to exploit Freud’s idea of ‘pansexualism’ – the search for pleasure, the exploitation of the differences between the sexes, the overthrowing of traditional relationships between men and women. To further their aims they would:
• attack the authority of the father, deny the specific roles of father and mother, and wrest away from families their rights as primary educators of their children.
• abolish differences in the education of boys and girls
• abolish all forms of male dominance – hence the presence of women in the armed forces
• declare women to be an ‘oppressed class’ and men as ‘oppressors’
Munzenberg summed up the Frankfurt School’s long-term operation thus: ‘We will make the West so corrupt that it stinks.’
Whoa!! Are you Sophie Mirabella and Alan Jones’ love child?
I bet you own a big 4 wheel drive, McMansion and frequent the Club most days, the haves hate the possibility of sharing.
Philip – it is NOT illegal to seek asylum. You and Tony Abbott are wrong and should stop peddling this crap.
Get yer facts right,
If its legal to arrive in Australia without a passport, let alone a visa, why does Australia spend millions employing an immigration and customs service?
Go to Jalan Bukit Bintang, Jalan Imbi & Changkat Bukit Bintang in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to see the ‘asylum seekers’ pump iron in the gyms, booze and party with their Korean girlfriends before hiring a boat to take them to Christmas Island.
the great thing about the asylum seeker debate is the emerging facts that when faced with the choice of safe indefinite refuge or a flight back home, the asylum seekers are OVERWHELMINGLY returning to the country they were supposedly fleeing of persecution…
for my mind, this shows them to not be legitimate refugees and simply que-jumpers taking advantage of australias lax laws…
Thank you for writing this Anne, I hadn’t realised it was this bad. I am shocked and saddened. Our Prime Minister deserve so much more respect than this.
Bravo! I’m a home-maker bloke with a powerful partner and a high-performing, twenty-something daughter. I’d like to live somewhere that performance isn’t qualified by gender. In fact, somewhere where gender is entirely unremarkable. Australia’s trailing much of the first world in that direction.
So, after reading Anne’s speech, it seems to me that she is saying that the PM’s political enemies have invoked the sleeping monsters alive in some of us.
And there are monsters. Traditionally, education, healthcare, effective law have been the their scourge, but the monsters still exist. The obscenity and vitriol Summers mentions are their exhalations, out-pourings of fear and anger that some of us live with everyday. For these Australians, hosts to parasites, their personal monsters have been roused by just a few men, aware Grendel exists and can be tapped.
Leaders, respectable men – with respectable wives and partners of great achievement, men of standing and good repute – have done this. I suspect their recourse to black magic is a legacy first invoked – in recent years – when the Tampa sailed into Australian waters, in 2001.
My husband and his friends love to share these vile emails: the more hysterical the hatred for the Prime Minister, the better. Any attempt to point out the blatant sexism is met with an eye roll, to indicate “there she goes, the shrieking feminist”. They all “know” that feminists are man-haters and penis-enviers, and are only that way because they cannot attract a man. In my experience, that describes the great majority of Australian men, and I cannot imagine that reason will take hold any time soon. Nevertheless, I will incorporate “it stops with me”. It can’t hurt, and who knows when it might cause a few moments of consideration.
I received an emaikl telling me about Anne Summers’ lecture this mroning from a male colleague. He wrote to me and six other – female – colleagues, expressing his outrage at the way our PM is being treated and encouraging us all to pass on the link to the talk to ten men we knew who, we thought would benefit from hearing it.
This is what I wrote to him – I am putting it here because I think it relates to what LAS wrote on 10/09/12.
“I was horrified and yet not surprised by the content of Anne Summers’ lecture. Perhaps that’s a reflection of my very specific gendered experience in our society as a woman. I am unfortunately very used to this kind of contempt, vilification, being directed towards me and other women. Typically in my experience, the issue of being female is seen as a predictable and acceptable thing to attack whenever and wherever there is controversy involving a woman, in a way that a person’s gender of being a male is NOT seen as a suitable thing to target.
I appreciate your activism. I was very saddened to find that I had trouble finding “10 men who would benefit from listening to this”. While I could think of men who , in my view, ‘need’ to be exposed to this message, I doubt they would be open to sitting through the entire talk. The ones I could think of who would be interested in/ willing to sit through the whole thing are already converts! As a woman, I suspect the other men would react to my sending it to them as me pushing a so-called ‘politically –correct’ line, that great way of dismissing the significance of any point made about sexism and misogyny in ou5r society. They would see me as trying to impose my views on them, being patronising towards them, and reacting in an extreme manner to the (in their view) rough-and-tumble world of politics. I cannot imagine them taking me seriously. Sadly, I don’t think these men I thought of are much different to any number of other men in Australian society. Another sad comment about where we are at in Australia right now. Nevertheless, I passed on your email and link to men and women I know who might be in positions of influence to put its content to good use.
On the other hand, I do think that, coming from a man – you – the message might have a different meaning for men. I notice you sent this message to seven women. I sincerely hope you consider (if you haven’t already) passing on this talk to men of your acquaintance and invite them to reflect on their own behaviour, sexist attitudes and misogyny. I have no doubt that the other six women who received this from you are no more surprised than I was, for the simple reason that it’s part of all of our everyday experience growing up and living as women. Particularly when we hold positions of influence, live lives considered not to be ‘mainstream’, or express controversial views openly. In my own life, it is routine for me to hear a male turn on me sexually, attack my looks, my age, and make obscene sexual references and even threats towards me. All on the basis that I’m a woman. An ugly fuck. An old bag. A fat [fill in suitable insulting female targeted epithet]. I think it’s because, in their eyes, I am seen at those times as ‘not knowing my place’. Or worse, daring to lay claim to choosing what my place on any particular issue is!
Having said that, I really hope you take up your activism really widely and target men around you. Women everywhere need you to have your voice raised among men to try to bring this kind of thing to a halt.”
I hope every man who comes across this talk takes up arms to end the vilification among other men. I thin men raising other men’s consciousness is where any hope for change might come.
Marie-Pierre
I am happy that this is finally being brought up as an issue. “She” is the cat’s mother. “Prime Minister Julia Gillard” is the correct way to refer to the PM. It is appalling that this needs to be said. “The PM”, “Prime Minister Gillard”, “the Prime Minister”, “Prime Minister of Australia, Julia Gillard”. Take your pick.
Reviewing comments re-enforces that we still have a long way to go to be treated equally. Much of public comment on the PM has little regard for the Office and her dedication to her task. So much denigration says more about the person making he comments. For many commentators they seem to be unable to separate out the issue of how appalling the PM has been treated from the actual policy decision. Even if you disagree with a specific Government policy we absolutely need to acknowledge and respect the PM’s commitment to advance our nation.
Anne,
Thank goodness you have spoken out. It is such a relief…I am over 1000 tweets now about this problem.
Tony Abbott and cronies plus the shock jocks, and the mad Pickering who is a corporate plunderer no less, have riled up the rabble in Australia good and proper. We have such a big problem here now, it might just take the likes of China invading us to sort us out and subdue these lunatics. The Chinese are a lot more orderly as humans from what I have noticed. This country has too long been a rough tough place.
Our society has for too long been so abrasive and the men here are renowned world wide for their rough behavior. The few decent men should be taking the abberrent ones by the scruff of the neck and having a good talk to them about good behavior and respect as a man of the species. I see Malcom Turnbull has come out, but he is not ruthless and angry enough about this appalling state we find ourselves in.
The hatred of women is talked about in the US too, however on recent trip to UK, I saw no sexism and felt so blissfully comfortable there. I want to become a refugee from Australia to a more urbane and civilized place.
Congratulations on a comprehensive article that deals with what many of us have been outraged about for a long time now. It is absolutely disgusting how wide the moronic commentary has reached and how many people have been influenced by this rubbish. Ignorance of basic human dignity is no excuse. That ignorance comes in many forms, including racism, bigotry, ageism, sexism etc. Keep up the good work Anne Summers. I am sure it will make a difference!
Given the PM has copped so much sexist abuse will we ever see another woman put her hand up for the top job again ?
Well done for giving thought to this issue. Many of those who have commented here have missed the point entirely, and have chosen to merely express their political views. The question of whether a large proportion of our voting citizenry are simply too immature to handle the existence of a female PM is an important question.
It seems unreal that some people are happily quoting the definition of “liar” without then applying same to the statement made by Ms Gillard. When this statement was made i.e. BEFORE the election it was an HONEST statement of intent. therefore NOT a lie. When Mr Howard mentioned the reference to the ‘Children overboard” he knew or could have reasonably been expected to know, that it was untrue. Ergo, he told a ‘lie’. Ms Gillard has not lied but did as the events demanded change her policy. Something most if not all “pollies” do at some time.
This is depressing stuff but what I find even more depressing is that so few people are speaking up for Julia Gillard. I’m an Australian living overseas, so I don’t read the Australian media regularly, but when I was back in Melbourne for the first half of this year, I checked The Age every day and its journalists were as dedicated to showing the negative side of anything concerning Gillard as Tony Abbott could possibly wish (although The Age doesn’t seem to approve of Abbott either: never worked out what’s going on there). But The Age’s rhetoric was as unspecific as the internet rhetoric: all I gathered was that Gillard reneged on one of “her” (i.e. her party’s) election promises (which has to be true of every politician ever) and that she wasn’t personally loyal to Kevin Rudd (although – or because – she’s demonstrably loyal to the Labor Party). So I think another aspect of the sexism here is that in the public perception, when Tony Abbott goes up against Malcolm Turnbull, it’s just the normal rough and tumble of politics but a woman politician is supposed to stand by her man – and even people who wouldn’t employ violent or sexually based threats against Gillard seem to feel destabilised by the idea that women in general mightn’t always do that. Thanks, Anne, for going against the trend and speaking out, instead of just shrugging helplessly or looking the other way.
This is not about politics folks. It’s an accurate, incisive observation about what our country has become. We are not who we pretend to be. It does stop with me. Thanks Anne. Someone had to say it.
has anyone counted up the negative comments made about this article that were written by males?
Thank you for showing how very vile the attacks on Ms Gillard are and how unreasonable.
Michelle Grattan wrote a snipey piece on Julia Gillard within a day or two of her taking office, referring to her “giggle” and other personal observations designed to question her ability and authority, and thus she has continued.(Hear her and Fran Kelly go for it on ABC early morning radio.) It reminded me of the worst kind of schoolgirl aggression, unworthy of her intelligence. All those upsetting bitch and witch words to follow shamed our abundant country. I have never travelled overseas but it seems obvious that we have much to celebrate. But the relentless negativity of political slurs feed a “poor bugger me” mindset in much of the population.
I have read this article with great interest and while it has indeed had a great deal of research done for it the emphasis of the article and therefore the outcome has been very much focused on the treatment of woman and in particular the Prime Minister. The bullying and vitriolic behaviour towards anyone in public office and particularly woman has I believe only reached the severe level that it has because of faceless, nameless people that can hide behind the internet. I do challenge some of the comments here though and agree with many others around the PM’s popularity. Where does this we all greeted her appointment with joy and happiness opinion come from, I for one have never been asked as I am sure many of you have not either. I do not like her for all her misleading of the public. I do not much like the opposition either but it is not about that, I speak to dozens of people in my daily endeavours and the word out there from the majority, who by the way give their opinion without being prompted, is that she is very unpopular and has to go, there may be one in every hundred people that believe she is wonderful and does a great job, but the average person on the street does not trust her, and the bottom line is if you don’t have trust you don’t have anything. And just as an aside the Carbon Tax has not been in long enough to be judged on whether it will have a dramatic effect on our cost of living. I for one have seen food prices rise dramatically in the last 3 weeks, oh but wait, that of course is entirely due to inflation.
It is a disgrace how she is treated. HOWEVER – It is time to restructure for productivity, accountability and efficiency all levels of parliament and require media licences to include actual budgetary accounts and reasons for changes NOT just headlines. i.e. We the masses require equality with Parliaments that have not restructured. Politicians will gain respect when they earn it.
Thank you so much for this brilliant piece of enlightened writing, Anne. The political climate in this country is disgusting and embarrassing. I should be more shocked but I’m not. I’ve watched it denigrating further and further and further. I tried to stand up and say no more, but I was vilified and targeted for daring to raise the sex card.
I haven’t had a chance to read all the comments on your article, I will do so tomorrow. But I just wanted to thank you for bringing this issue into a public forum. I have felt so exasperated by this very topic and not had the space to say it. I quit facebook a couple of months ago almost exclusively because of the anti-Gillard page you mentioned. Maybe I should go back just so I can say, once and for all: It stops with me.
Great article Anne. Desperately needed to be said in the public domain. I must admit, i was deeply shocked at the disgusting level to which creatures like the criminal Pickering and his like have stooped. That the likes of Pickering or shock jocks like Alan Jones have any credibility at all, is beyond comprehension.
Or that the egregious liar Abbott is not called on his lies and back flips by these self-appointed guardians of public morals, who themselves fall far short of any definition of honesty, integrity or decency.
I heartily agree that such appallingly violent, obnoxious and offensive material should have been denounced publicly by not only the msm, but particularly by the opposition and the PM’s colleagues. It is completely unacceptable and should be actionable. Even more so when you consider Pickering’s dubious and dishonest character; conman, liar and thief.
I also find it offensive that amd and his/her like continue to knowingly peddle the carbon tax lie, despite knowing the truth.
Apparently, it’s OK for amd and co to make a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; an intentional untruth; a falsehood. Something intended or serving to convey a false impression. An inaccurate or false statement, but not for the PM to say there will be no carbon tax, but that she is open to the implementation of a price on carbon emissions, transitioning to an ETS and in fact doing so.
You can only conclude that amd is just a common or garden liar or an ignoramus.
Amongst my friends, it was quite common to refer to “little Johnny”. One of the beauties of social networks is that people can now be very public about their opinions. This was not so in the past, unless you were a member of the media. Another reality is that people tend to voice their dislikes, not their likes. I actually “like” that people can say what they want through these mediums and there is no (current) legislation that can stop it. I do not believe that you can legislate against bigotry or prejudice. People have every right to have these opinions in a democratic society. I think you are over reacting to see this as a sexist issue. “She” was treacherous in the way she came to power, has made some poor choices in the past which are coming to light, represents our country as someone who “lives in sin”, and probably succesfully sounded the death knell for independants and the greens in Australian politics. If you want the job, you better have a thick enough skin to take what you are going to get. I don’t believe it is sexist, I just think she is dreadfully unpopular. After “Julia”, you probably won’t see a Labour government in Australia for another 30 years. (And all Prime Ministers have been referred to as liars by the public throughout history, because they generally have been. We just didn’t have the social networking we have today.”
Great article, Dr Summers. It’s true; criticism has been laid on thick more so with Julia Gillard, than any other Australian PM. What about the appalling ‘children overboard’ incident? (As horrible as this was, the then PM, John Howard, walked away from that relatively unscathed). There’s always this reference to the ‘Carbon Tax’ that people are going to be worse off…..(cry me a F—ing River!!) The main perpetrator, Tony Abbott is always making reference to it with sarcasm and vitriol, with not much else to say, and it has quickly trickled down to the simpletons who haven’t studied what the Carbon Tax is really about, continuing to refer to the PM as having ‘lied’. The word ‘lied’ has been used alongside Ms Gillard’s name to the point that a new word for is need to replace ‘lied’. It has run its use-by date. On the other hand, give me a break! Politicians go back on their word ALL THE TIME!!! It’s part of what they do. Has anyone ever considered that back-flips are sometimes necessary? All this under a steady economy (in the midst of the WFC). By the way, somewhat unrelated, I know, but I congratulate Ms Gillard for recently withdrawing her attendance to the ACL convention. Now that’s what I call another step in the right direction.
It is interesting to me that people assume (or pretend to assume) that the media has handed the public their opinions. Take a moment to consider that, just because the public does not agree with you, the majority might still be perfectly well educated on the subject and have their own opinions. Perhaps the media is reflecting public opinion, rather than driving it. I grew up in poverty in Glasgow, Scotland and am a lifelong Labour/Labor voter. I will not vote for Ms Gillard twice (fool me once, shame on you). I will not vote for Mr Rabbit the religious misogynist either. If those are our options I will vote None Of The Above.
As I stated above: I voted for Ms Gillard, barely, because she absolutely promised no Carbon Tax. Howard, though I loathed the man, did not go into an election saying “There will be no GST under the government I lead” and then renege on that promise a mere few months later. The only reason Ms Gillard was elected was her no CT promise, which she then broke.
She was definitely NOT greeted with “widespread enthusiasm”. Most of us were unaware that she had planned to oust our elected PM and were shocked by the abrupt, unasked for change.
Still, she limped in as Howard was so detested and we had not forgotten the misery of the last few years of his leadership – and of course because she solemnly promised not to lumber us with a Carbon Tax.
While the vilification of Gillard is indeed over the top and often sexist, the general dislike of her is driven by what the public feels – nobody is putting thoughts into their heads. Believe it or not, most of us are capable of making up our own minds. The general feeling towards Gillard has not changed in any way because it directly relates to the lie she told.
And yes, it was a lie. Lie: “A false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; an intentional untruth; a falsehood. Something intended or serving to convey a false impression. An inaccurate or false statement.”
None of that excuses the sexist attacks on her. But please be very clear, the public dislikes Ms Gillard for what she has done to us. The media merely runs with what the majority already feel.
Oh, and finally, before anyone says that sexism and misogynistic attacks are the point – then that should have been all that was addressed in this piece. When a person makes statements such as “as DPM she had enjoyed enormous popularity…initially her elevation was greeted with widespread enthusiasm. There was a palpable sense of history in the media coverage…Women and girls, especially, were thrilled at this milestone having been reached.” they can expect those who disagree strongly to take note.
Please do not tell people who absolutely did not greet her with “widespread enthusiasm” that “Over the past two years Tony Abbott has relentlessly used Gillard’s backflip on the carbon tax to depict her as unreliable, as untrustworthy and as a liar. The notion that the prime minister is a “liar” has now been firmly planted in the public mind.” thereby incorrectly stating that the public did not come to their own opinion on Ms Gillard. If you do make such incorrect statements, you may expect those who disagree with your (unproven) opinion to take you to task over it.
And finally, Mr Rabbit might well have been beating Ms Gillard over the head with her lie for the last two years, but she made that bed for herself. Mr Rabbit is simply using what the public already felt to attack Gillard. He did not make anybody distrust and dislike our PM. Ms Gillard did that all by herself.
Amd, you are most admirably determined to convince us that “the public” believe Gillard is a liar – who exactly is this public you are so privileged to represent?
Dr Summers’ claims are based on research and evidence. Your confused assertions, however, are based on the inflammatory and bigoted misrepresentations of a concerted campaign to discredit Gillard by any means possible.
Frankly I think you are turfing for ” Mr Rabbit” – is that really your photo?
Do you always vote in the nude, btw?
I wonder if you have had an eye test lately? I clearly have clothes on. Believe whatever you choose, as you will anyway. Interestingly, I have found that those who tend to embellish the truth a great deal themselves assume the same of others – just a personal observation; and when the lady who wrote the piece shows me all her citations and gives me proof of her statement about the public who greeted Ms Gillard with “widespread enthusiasm” and all the other various claims she made, I will be sure to do the same.
As this was pretty much trolling from start to finish (troll: someone who posts inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community with the primary intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion) our conversation is now over – except to say that the author must be simply delighted to have such quality readers defending her stance.
Oh, and if you weren’t referring to the photo of me re the nude comment – I literally have no idea at all of what you were trying to say. Except of course, that you were attempting to be insulting. And with that, have a great life, as we won’t be talking again.
“Dr Summers’ claims are based on research and evidence”
Groan!
Don’t point out how the tax wealth I create is mis-appropriated towards a mendacious agenda (see Johns post above) that discrmiiniates against me on gender or I’ll emigrate and stop the funding.
Anne Summers doesn’t merely blame the media though – “In this lecture I want to examine what I contend is the sexist and discriminatory treatment of Australia’s first female prime minister by the Opposition and by some elements in Australian society.”
The media is certainly responsible for helping to spread the vitriol, but I think it’s quite clear in the lecture that this is a wider social problem.
There is certainly a wider social problem and I find the sexist attacks on Ms Gillard, or any woman, repellent. What I was annoyed about was the author’s belief that we, the public, were being driven by the media and Mr Rabbit to dislike Ms Gillard. The vile, sexist nonsense is unacceptable, but the overall dislike of Ms Gillard is reflected by the media, not driven by it. As I said, our PM managed to make us distrust her, all by herself.
I just think if that if sexism and misogyny in the press was the author’s point, she should have stuck to that. She had valid points to make. However, she was also interested in promoting a pro-Gillard stance, to the point where she made incorrect assumptions and inaccurate statements. It was those I felt compelled to address.
Great piece. Needed to be said. Didn’t know it was so bad…but…if I want to promote “it stops with me” by circulating this article I don’t want the Pickering dildo image to be the thumbnail when I link to this article on my Facebook page. Can you please amend this?
Alison, you have a few options. You’ll find that Facebook will let you choose between any image used on the page for the thumbnail: choose the one Ms Gillard at the top of the page. You can also set the Facebook link to display no thumbnail at all. Lastly, you can choose to link to the vanilla version of the article, which has no images and thus will display no thumbnail.
I commend Anne Summers on her lecture which brings attention to this ugly side of Australian culture. Women of Australia should feel angry at our P.M. being treated so disrepectfully whether we agree with her policies or not. We form half the voting block, we must demand it stop and feel contempt for those pedalling misogyny. We are approaching 2013, not 1950, so let’s start treating a person who has the capacity to handle the job with some respect, male or female. we’ve moved out of the kitchen men and we are moving on up whether you like it or not.
the answer is rather simple, Robert Gray. No email, no internet, no facebook.And really more intelligent less sexist arguments. Women in Oz are held in the lowest realms by Males. But here’s one for you .”if Margaret Thatcher was the answer , it was the wrong bloody question” badges worn at UK labour conference
I, and many others had very high hopes when our country elected its’ first female prime minister. Sadly however, rather than act on her own initiative, she continues to obey the union controllers & adding to her IR debacle, which took our nation’s productivity back to the early sixties, now seems if anything, to be competing with those bottom feeding European countries (Italy,Greece,France etc)to achieve a homogenized & un-motivated society which as always, only results in generally widespread discontent!
Poor Maurie…. can’t you think for yourself, instead of regurgitating such hackneyed old drivel, as told by the shock-jocks ? The need to resort to bottomless cliches reflects an inadequate knowledge base, and a lazy intellect. Sorry mate, but you need to know.
Funny Margaret Thatcher never had these problems. Why is that?
I see from reading this shocking article that it is not only the USA that has a terminally-ill political system. After reading this article, I feel so sad for Australia. As a long-time listener and avid fan of ABC Classic FM (via the Internet), I think I had put Australia in a ‘golden frame.’ That frame just fell off and clanged to the floor. I have sometimes regretted that I did not seek to emigrate to Australia when I was younger, when I might have been accepted as a valuable allied-health worker. I can now stop regretting that, at least.
Anne ..Wonderful ..Wonderful ..Wonderful
Garvin
Mahatma Gandhi Awareness
Julia Gillard is probably one of the most successful prime ministers Australia has ever had and I think the reason, men, mainly are abusive is because they are afraid of successful women and don’t like the fact she is intelligent and doing a great job for this country. I am horrified and disgusted by the way people talk about her. I think a lot of the nation only say things because they heard someone else say them, they don’t even know what she has achieved. They listen to stupid male radio personalities who have no etiquette or honour for women and believe all their lies because they have sad, uninteresting lives. People who make these comments probably treated their own mothers with contempt.
I am so thankful to you, Anne, for using this dignified and plain-spoken approach to a serious problem. I have long wondered why the office of Prime MInister has suddenly become an optional term, rather than one used in respect automatically. Ms Gillard is standing tall and not resorting to bully-boy tactics. However I don’t understand the strong media bias against reporting support for her. Even within her party, comment from her supporters is apparently rare and/or brief. As much as we seemed unable to hold Howard accountable for lies (children overboard, anyone?); we seem as a population strangely unable to protest loudly enough, publicly enough. Is the media in Australia REALLY so spineless?
Yes, this is terrible, it’s grubby. But I cannot see it being stopped, just mitigated. Let me just outline something: at a base level this is politics as we know it – it doesn’t seem to shock, until a women rises to power. A women, in a way, inadvertently shines a light on this whole base level, revealing its most basest drives.
A women would never seek to goad it! Unfortunately, that base instinct flies reflexively like a moth toward that flame. When all this happens, a women in power, what appears is a unique if crude opportunity in politics: a whole lexicon of feminine slander added to the already sagging arsenal which, quite simply, isn’t available to the reptilian-type when he/she wishes to harass a man.
Not because Men are special. But because women are. That might seemed old-fashioned. But if the past leaves us any legacy at all in how to treat women, surely we can at least keep a few idealistic types of chivalry intact. Instead of doing the complete reverse!
It is interesting to see, here, the aim to discredit some of the talk by finding some possible inaccuracies such as if a male PM was called liar, or Tony Abbott’s budgie smugglers, etc. while disregarding, appears, the total issue such as naked pictures, gross cartoons. It appears many people can’t comprehend or think beyond the level of a Tweet statement. Such an approach misses the whole point of the talk, I think. It is like leaving out the bits of the Bible that you don’t like to believe what you want.
The point is that vitriol/hate/ is getting worse and has been amplified since having a female PM. No-person should be subjected to it. It is all so personalized and yet the economy , etc. is in good shape. Sure, things can be better, but the PM says that too and is trying to do something about it.
Thank you Dr Summers for forensically presenting the misogynistic depths our public discourse has reached. While it is something I have been concerned about and speaking about with others for some time, the actual extent and reality of it is beyond anything I even imagined and is truly disturbing. We should all make a stand and say this is enough as you rightly say, for it is a a warning to all women and should not be ignored. I will be passing your address around to as many people as I can.
Absolutely brilliant piece of work Ms Summers. Thank-you.
You could have saved both of us much time had you simply stated that you are anti-Freedom of Speech. Instead, this rambling drivel reveals a misandry that undermines your slogan of Human Rights & Social Justice – where men (of European origins) get blamed for all the ills of the world.
Julia (after Tony ‘BLair’, another lawyer, who ruined England in a mere 13 years) is disliked for lying on a critical issue of great impact to the lives of ordinary Australians (CO2 tax) and for introducing the economic driver ruining mining tax; for ruining the beef industry of northern Australia based on 10 minutes of footage from a TV show; for employing cynical tactics to ensure recent immigrants, especially from non-democratic nations now residing in one where voting is compulsory, become lifetime clients to Labor because they get things for free.
As ever, the International Labour Movement brings an end to poverty by making everyone equally poor through wealth re-distribution.
I wish Gina Reinhart were Prime Minister. She wouldn’t experience much vilification from the men that keep Australia functioning, although she would probably receive much from women, especially, if she told them to stop smoking and get out of the pub to the NorthWest to sweat amongst the flies digging holes for 12 hours a day.
Eric, you are not even worthy of a nasty name.
You are simply a goose.
Eric, about 99% of what you just said is a complete fabrication. You should try some actual research (other than reading News Limited newspapers or listening to Alan Jones)
Elise,
Since you have no points either why didn’t you go straight to the name calling, like the gender challenged Wellbill? Since I don’t listen to News Limited or Alan Jones, perhaps you’ll direct me toward the Communist Manifesto.
Eric,
I did not provide points, because it is clear to me that you are incapable of objectivity, however, since you asked:
1. at no point did i call you a name
2. Aged Care Reform. Even if you’re not old yet, you will be one day. This will dramatically increase their options and quality of life.
3. NDIS. See above for reasons
4. The mining tax is not hurting anyone, a)it will only benefit ordinary Australians. b) After Kevin Rudd announced his mining tax, the Chinese signed a $5 billion deal with us, and considering the Gillard version of the tax is considerably watered down from Rudds, it will not effect investment c) If the mining industry is ruined then how is it possible that Gina is the richest woman in the world?, and d) the only thing remotely hurting the mining industry is the high dollar & China’s downturn – neither of which is the fault of the Gillard government.
5. low unemployment, large middle class – a far cry from ordinary Australians all being poor due to wealth distribution
6. the Carbon Tax has not had a great impact on the lives of ordinary Australians, in fact, its barely registered in most people’s lives.
7. you may have to submit a vote, but no one said it had to be valid – you always have the option of a donkey vote if you feel that strongly about it, however, keep in mind that if you dont vote, then you have no right to whinge about the people who get in, because you did nothing to try to prevent them by making your vote count.
I could go on, but its just not worth the effort. Eric, if you think Gillard is doing such a bad job, why dont you go to Greece, or Spain or even the UK or US? Because every single one of them would dearly love to be in the economic position Australia is. As for communism, perhaps you might want to visit China. I think you’ll notice a marked difference in the type of government we have compared with theirs.
Less government and less taxes = more freedom.
Regulated banking is the reason Australia did not experience the GFC – along with China resource requirements, mortgages that get re-paid (unlike Bill Clintons mess) and having its own currency and interest rates.
The only thing you don’t pay for in China is the air you breath. The only thing you don’t pay tax on in Australia is the air you breath. Remember, China refused to bail out the EU because it has a welfare system.
Who pays your CO2 tax for you …. is it me?
I must congratulate you Anne on having the courage to speak out on this subject. For some time I have been disgusted by the attacks on our Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, in the media, however I had no idea of the depths to which some people in Australia have sunk in their attempts to discredit her. It makes me ashamed to be Australian. But even more so it makes me angry to realise there are people out there who will sink to such depths to villify the holder of the highest public office in Australia, our Prime Minister. It has never happened to a male PM, so we must assume it is sexist, and this is a reflection on the attitudes of some rednecks in our society to women in general.
However, I am beginning to wonder at the apathy of Australians. I shared your speech on my FB page, and asked that others do the same in interests of deceny and respect.So far I have only had two comments in reply. What does this say about our society today?
[...] We have to do this because I am alarmed that we have created a climate of misogyny that is widespread and contagious. It taints all of us, makes all women vulnerable and it is likely to act as a deterrent to young women thinking about a career in politics. Why would anyone want to step up for such treatment? And more Read the whole article here http://annesummers.com.au/speeches/her-rights-at-work-r-rated/ [...]
If Pickering’s offensive cartoons were emailed over the internet, why hasn’t someone referred them to ACMA and/or the Federal Police? Did any female pollies receive a copy of his emailed cartoons?
She is a liar. She has not done a good job at all. She should have just held an election. There is no way this parliament has governed in the best interest of all Australians. She will be gone soon anyhow so all of this is yesterdays news. The next PM will have worse things said about him/her I am sure.
Can you demonstrate ‘Liar’?
Or are you merely parrotting what other ignoramuses utter, out of sheer ignorance?
Stan, it is obvious by your post that you lack any valid arguments since you can only use the front slogan created by Tony Abbott and his followers and like minded shock jocks. I would have excatly the same grounds that you have to call the Prime Minister a liar to say that you are a coward. Whether she has done a good job or not depends on the perspective from which you judge it. Yours seems to be the lowest placed one given the mindless asessment of dismissing her entire time as a Prime Minister unworthy. We had the elections, pity the results wre not the ones you expected. This parliament, despite the constant saboataging from the coalition has achieved enormously by any sensible person’s expectations. People like you I take it, are the guarantee that the next Prime Minister whoever that be will have an even worse treatment than our current one.
I am so glad that someone has finally decided to write this, it’s what I’ve been saying on my blog and on twitter for long enough.
No body listens to the fact that there are people out there that really think this is disgusting.
She is our prime minister
She gets up day after day and continues to fight for Australia and this is the kind of thank you she gets.
Yes many people don’t agree with her policy or party and yes that is fine too However this kind if bile is ridiculous.
Politics doesn’t need to get personal like this . No one drew cartoons of pervious prime ministers with vaginas. The bias is unreal total sexist behaviour. Shame on some people here in Australia shame on you .
Satire is a normal part of healthy social discourse. In terms of the ABC, including the CHASER, they are required to ensure balance in how they refer to both sides of politics. What makes the Gillard case different, and in my mind so wrong, is that this goes beyond satire and is a onesided deliberate campaign of abuse which highlights the purile nastiness of the ones who are doing it. And then the further question is, why is this allowed to occur? That is when the question of gender comes in for me.
I honestly believe that it is Tony Abbott who has led the vitriolic and nasty personal attack that has crept in to our Public and Parliamentary debate.
Anyone who reads Hansard in the days of the Craig Tomson and Slipper affairs at their peak,, will see the most appalling display of vitriolic attack, day after day after day, on the PM and on the persons concerned. A really disgusting display of workplace bullying, perpetrated mainly by Abbott and Christopher Pyne.
Abbott, as the leader of his team, should have reined in Pyne and Abetz – but he lead them on to even greater personal abuse .
If ever someone wants to bring a case against them, I, for one would gladly donate to Court costs. By all means include the shock jodks in any action. I’m sure that there would be many Twitterers and Facebook followers who would gladly chip in too.( decent LNP supporters (eg Fraser and like) would be happy to contribute too).
Dear Lurline,
While I’m not sure that Tony Abbott led the campaign (Alan Jones et al have taken quite some initiative themselves), Abbott is certainly in a position to curtail the attaches and demand this element be removed from his election efforts.
Notably Abbott is quite different here from John Mcaine in the US, who when faced with a Republican supporter who vilified (the then) Senator Obama, responded, immediately, by countering the vilification, saying that he was sure Obama was a fine American!
THANK YOU Anne for this very important address and detailing the vile hate that has been circulated about our Prime Minister. I am a woman in my 60′s. I had of course seen and heard about some of the villification in mainstream media but your detailed examples, especially the Pickering stuff and unprovoked service industry peoples’ comments have left me truly aghast.
We must all work to out this stuff and speak up. Julia Gillard is doing an amzing job under such difficult circumstances – I am so glad that she forcefully spoke up about this. BUT I had no idea how appalling it was.
Two words for your consideration: budgie smugglers. Different is it?
Treeza it is substantively different, as is the picture attached to a previous comment of John Howard. As with Putin in Russia, the leader of the federal opposition attempts to gain attention through orchestrated displays of hyper masculinity for photo opportunities. These displays are with the consent if not instigated by that male politician. There are plenty of other ways to represent that they are an active and by inference healthy person. A zoomorphic reference is not the same as the virulent misogyny that is behind the many sexist and abusive images and verbal and written threats of violence directed at the gender of the Prime Minister. The ideology behind the politically motivated propaganda directed at the PM is bankrupt if it can only resort to gender violence as it’s strategy. Rather different than some egoist attempting to drum up votes by playing “iron man”. By the way lounging by the poolside in Gosford didn’t work for Bob Hawke either.
Excellent reply to Treeza Jillian- you summed it up perfectly
Two words for your consideration: budgie smugglers. Different is it?
John, she is hated BECAUSEof this campaign; the extraordinary achievements of this govt have been smothered by the vitriol and determined negativity. So what’s not to like about this govts record? Growth, low inflation, fantastic health programmes, low interest rates, fat and happy except when we decide to be angry. What more could we want? Hell even the carbon levy hasn’t hurt! Having said that – in the term of this govt I have met only 2 ppl who dislike JG – one a plumber who said she’s a bitch, but was unable to show where or why ; the other a wood merchant who blamed her for the GFC and the poor showing of his business. Everybody else I ask has said they admire her fortitude, negotiation and comprimised skills, and the results.
I think the outrageous villification of J Gillard goes well beyond hatred of female leaders. Alan Jones and the right wing loony Tea Party, Sarah Palin and Pauline Hanson fellow travellers will never accept the legitimacy of a social democrat government. Witness the unceasing and virulent hatred and attacks on Obama (The Birthers), Clinton, Keating (Howard “I will govern for all of us” code for attacking the elites and political correctness) and Whitlam (attacks on his intellectualism).
Great lecture! Too bad very few of the what are mostly uneducated and ignorant intended audience of these attacks will never see the error of their ways or even know that they are being manipulated in such a subtle (well OK not so subtle – but they are ignorant aren’t they!!)…..and this is why, unfortunately the PM’s days are numbered. Her biggest mistake, I think, is not to see this is the case, explain her reasons (including above), highlight the problems (but in a way as not to be able to be then labled – as would be inevitable – that she was “soft” and as a woman did not have the ticker etc.), and then somehow transition to another leader just to at least give the party some clean air and a chance of beating Mr Abbott, which ordinarily would not be very difficult a task. (Not K Rudd though!!)…..even if she could convince another female into the job…..be it Tania P. as probably the best possibility…..but the reality is someone like Combet or Shorten are probably the only viable choices…..or Jason Clare …..but my point being it would have to be orderly and explained….not some backroom, rushed, forced decision….and at the same time take the oportunity to show the public exactly what she has been forced to endure and become a champion of the anti women / anti bullying cause. All that aside, the comment I actually wanted to make with respect to the article was that with respect to the Facebook “comments” (with the Larry P the only one I have looked at) you do mention that at least with Facebook we can see their “names” and “photos” and I agree this is an important point, although what does totally amaze me is that many many of these negative comments or even ones just saying “good point” etc are from WOMEN…..adding to this these WOMEN often disclose on their facebook pages where they work (I have seen ones from staff in Large Hospitals / Government Departments and even large Law Firms)…..as far as I am concerned these “participants” should be brought to account under the bullying laws you mention or at least somehow just simply shamed (which is probably a form of bullying, so there is a dilema!!)
“There are countless examples, however, where the prime minister is attacked, vilified or demeaned in ways that do specifically relate to her sex”… Of which I will give absolutely zero examples but instead will twist all criticism she has received to appear sexually motivated even though it is the same criticism given to other politicians and previous Prime Ministers.
I’ve just finished reading your piece – twice.
To say I’m in shock at the extent of the abuse is an understatement…
Julia Gillard made history by becoming Australa’s first female Prime Minister, and all people seem to want to do – both publicly and privately – is to tear her down.
All the Canberra press gallery are complicit – particularly some of the female ones (Michelle Grattan springs to mind) and all of the Murdoch and most of Fairfax. I would also include the ABC in this – some of the current affairs interviews have been unbelievably aggressive, particularly by female interviewers, which shows that this sort of prejudice can come from all sides.
It would be fair to say that if Julia was a male politician then she would be admired and envied for being some sort of tough guy… What is happening to the PM is sadly indicative of how bloody immature this country really is – right across the board as some examples from previous posts here have indicated.
I sincerely hope Julia Gillard you tough it out…
I have read many of the comments. Quite a few are saying where were the voices when Howard got the treatment. I want to say I don’t condone any offensive material of our PM whether they are male or female, but this is far worse than anything directed at any male pollie that I have ever seen. I also believe evrytime you say “what about Howard” that you are discrediting what has been written, its not either or. This is wrong people. This is mysogyny on a grand scale. It has to stop because ultimately society is the loser, WE lose everytime we turn a blind eye to this sort of treatment of women. If this is how we treat the woman who holds the highest office in the land…..then what have we become? What hope does the woman being abused at home have? I like the phrase: it stops with me.
An example of how much this attitude filters through the community: the West Australian today published a front page story about a high school where students used Facebook to attack a female teacher and suggest she be raped and killed.
Thus this vitriol spreads well beyond the political level and impacts a wide range of people. Those who, in politics and the media, are the sources of validating this kind of behaviour are causing incalculable harm to our country.
well said
1. Claim: Neither John Howard or Paul Keating were ever called liars.
This is incorrect. Both men were called liars. Repeatedly. John Howard was even called a “lying rodent” by one of his own MPs. Lists of Howard’s “lies” were compiled and updated by his political opponents (“never ever, GST”, “children overboard” and “WMDs” are just a few). As for Paul “No I didn’t say go and get a job” Keating, google “John Howard Reveals The Lies Of Paul Keating” for the video on metacafe and watch a young Howard take on the speaker, tell someone on the Government’s side to sit down, and then proceed to rip into “this man [pointing], Paul J Keating” (with emphasis on the J) and his “river of deceit”.
2. Claim: No other Prime Minister has been referred to by their first name.
I distinctly remember a “Not Happy, John” campaign. I also remember a “Kevin ’07″ and a “Kevin 747″. In fact you could argue that Kevin exacerbated the problem by campaigning entirely on his first name.
3. Claim: General vitriol against the Prime Minister (cab drivers and flower markets).
There’s a simple explanation for all of this: We’ve never had a Prime Minister that was rated so poorly (or hated so much). Not even John Howard, in his final term of office, had disapproval ratings as high as Gillard’s are now; and that was after four terms – over a decade – in office. Gillard hasn’t even made it through one term yet. In fact she barely even got re-elected in the first place, holding Government only by a Green’s nose.
No, it doesn’t excuse any of it but think of it this way: Imagine George W. Bush as Prime Minister of Australia. Now think what the reaction to that would be. It wouldn’t be pretty.
Good post.
Actually, John is right on the money. I voted for Ms Gillard, barely, because she absolutely promised no Carbon Tax. Howard, though I loathed the man, did not go into an election saying “There will be no GST under the government I lead” and then renege on that promise a mere few months later. The only reason Ms Gillard was elected was her no CT promise, which she then broke.
She was definitely NOT greeted with “widespread enthusiasm”. Most of us were unaware that she had planned to oust our elected PM and were shocked by the abrupt, unasked for change.
Still, she limped in as Howard was so detested and we had not forgotten the misery of the last few years of his leadership – and of course because she solemnly promised not to lumber us with a Carbon Tax.
While the vilification of Gillard is indeed over the top and often sexist, the general dislike of her is driven by what the public feels – nobody is putting thoughts into their heads. Believe it or not, most of us are capable of making up our own minds. The general feeling towards Gillard has not changed in any way because it directly relates to the lie she told.
And yes, it was a lie. Lie: “A false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; an intentional untruth; a falsehood. Something intended or serving to convey a false impression. An inaccurate or false statement.”
None of that excuses the sexist attacks on her. But please be very clear, the public dislikes Ms Gillard for what she has done to us. The media merely runs with what the majority already feel.
You are incredibly naive, and seemed to have missed the entire point of the speech.
@amd. You voted for her because she promised no CT, but to go on and declare that that’s the only reason she was elected is your own little fantasy, dearie.
Written like a man John. You have missed the point entirely it is NOT a competition. Put your head back in the sand.
Misandry, short and simple.
Mark, I have made a post here in which I ask can we step away from positive or negative discrimination and more toward equality and I am a woman.
I’m in sympathy for Julia Gillard’s or anyones ridicule. In part I’m critical that this condemnation hasn’t included Gina Rinehart’s abuse, another current female figure, and also in part critical men seem to be not included under this umbrella of respect we are asking for all.
I think Anne putting the pictures in this article is what has really driven the point home for many of us so feel it is importent to show this http://goo.gl/L8YKr as well. Please take a minute to look, Mark, I feel sure you too would condemn this?
This article whilst very good, is also in danger of non inclusiveness, political bias and misanderism!
Anne and Mark, I want equality!
I don’t see in any way how this article is possibly promoting the bogus concept of misanderism? There is a systematic, fetishistic and driven attempt through over-sexualisation to discredit a woman who has done absolutely nothing to warrant any attention on her sexuality whatsoever- she has simply been going about her job with diplomacy and tact- much, much more than I could say I would possess in the face of such vicious and unwarranted attacks.
Someone mentioned below what about poor Abbott getting teased about ‘budgie smugglers’- this is a typical twist those who wish to deride equal opportunity for women arguments use. The difference in these two cases being that I can’t for the life of me imagine Prime Minister Gillard posing for the media in a bikini- it would be unbecoming of someone of her political stature, and as rebutted below, is indicative only of Tony Abbott’s ploy to represent masculinity/virility as a political agenda. Julia Gillard conducts herself with taste and pride, yet she is hounded in the most vile of manners, while the bullish, dogging and corrupt attacks of Mr Abbott go very much under the radar. Here’s another article from ABC’s The Drum, pin pointing exactly these arguments- we must ask why Mr Abbott is constantly allowed to get away with complete folly while the tiniest of slip ups on the behalf of Prime Minister Gillard is completely torn to shreds.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-08-17/cassidy-a-rare-challenge-for-abbott/4203120
I am and continue to be disgusted by the misogyny represented in the Australian media and the Australian people- for the first nation in the entire world to have won the fight for women to vote, it seems we still have an extremely long way to for women in politics. Julia Gillard is a prime example of someone doing a marvellous job who will be villified no matter how she performs, simply because of her gender.
“promoting the bogus concept of misanderism? LOL! Ignorance PhD.
1 Hopefully upon the death of her father, the Prime Minister will also send her condolences to the families of the 3-5 fathers that commit suicide per day due to Labor’s Child Support Agency.
2 The Western World has quietly become a civilization that undervalues men and overvalues women, where the state forcibly transfers resources from men to women creating various perverse incentives for otherwise good women to conduct great evil against men and children, and where male nature is vilified but female nature is celebrated.
This is unfair to both genders, and is a recipe for a rapid civilizational decline and displacement, the costs of which will ultimately be borne by a subsequent generation of innocent women, rather than men, as soon as 2020.
3 Frankfurt School – Conspiracy to Corrupt: “declare women to be an ‘oppressed class’ and men as ‘oppressors”.
Western civilization at the present day is passing through a crisis which is essentially different from anything that has been previously experienced. Other societies in the past have changed their social institutions or their religious beliefs under the influence of external forces or the slow development of internal growth. But none, like our own, has ever consciously faced the prospect of a fundamental alteration of the beliefs and institutions on which the whole fabric of social life rests … Civilization is being uprooted from its foundations in nature and tradition and is being reconstituted in a new organisation which is as artificial and mechanical as a modern factory.
NZ was the first nation to adopt women’s suffrage. Australia did accomodate women MPs first, though.
I think its a disgrace and pathetic how people focus on the fact that she is a female.She is not treated equally in the system and the media…i do understand this being a gay female who is in a 16 yr relationship with my partner and we have an 8yr old son who would like to also be treated equally in this country.I say this to show i am no fan of her in some ways but i did vote for her and she deserves to have equal rights…i hope she can see how we feel…its not fair and shouldnt be, but is…it is frustrating and makes no sense and some people you will never change but as women in general we are used to it and have made some progress …i hope one day this will also be a lot better but for now we should be highlighting this more in the media as most people just take it for granted that its ok and its not.
Thank you so much for what you have said. Unfortunately, it will have little, or no, effect on those who follow the rantings of the vile “shock-jocks” whose ratings depend on fueling the ill-informed opinions of their audiences.
I note as well that those who have disagreed with you have almost universally tended to be male. Says as much as your speech itself, I think!
Thank you. For so long I was disheartened to think Australia, unlike a number of Muslim countries, was not ready for a femail PM. I’m encouraged to see so many women standing up and saying “enough”! I think we need to apply this across the board. I am no fan of Gina Rinehart personally. But the attacks on her weight are unnecessary and distract from the real issues. Let’s face it, we don’t tend to attack Clive Palmer’s weight in the same way! Again, no fan of his either.
We all need to pick up our act and treat women with respect. Let’s judge our eladers on their words and deeds not their physicality, sexuality or dress sense. Let’s all agree to treat women with respect whether we like them or not.
Thank you so much for this erudite expose of the nasty underbelly in our country.
It certainly stops with me!!
After living in rural NSW for many years, when I went to Sydney in 1990 and joined the public service, during my induction, I was astonished to learn that along with Aborigines, women were regarded as ‘second class citizens’. Out in the bush I knew it was a man’s world, but I had hoped that in the city I would find equality, with more ‘enlightened’ people. Sure, the PS had the anti-discrimination and equal opportunity regulations, but it did not extend to cover the entire workforce.
Dr Summers, your article is timely, but will it reach a wide audience? I have constantly loathed the way Julia Gillard is treated, in every respect. But I knew nothing of Pickering’s loathsome cartoons. I do speak out when I hear derogatory remarks about anyone, whether it be by the local bus driver or someone I know… Thank you for the full article online – I had read the abridged one in the Herald. What can we do, from now on to say Enough!? I will watch out for both politicians and journalists to pick up the ball.
Anne, thank you for writing this article.
I have a small suggestion: in this article all the accompanying images are derogatory images of the Prime Minister, visual example of your argument. In sharing this article on Facebook, I was unable to select a “thumbnail” that was a fair representation of Julia Gillard. It seemed inappropriate to select the images, so I left it blank. One image of the Prime Minister that presented her favourably would be useful. It increases the appeal of sharing.
Good point. I’ve added a decent photo of Ms Gillard near the top of the page. Thanks for the suggestion.
Oh wow! thank you for speaking out. I have felt so discouraged and disappointed by the treatment of our Prime Minister particularly by the media and the opposition, but also by the Australian population. And I didn’t even know the extent of the abuse.
Thanks for bringing it out in the open. And I do agree, the abuse has to stop with each of us. When we get one of those unprovoked disparaging comments, we have to stand up and say its unacceptable.
[...] Ceremony [...]
[...] just read “Her Rights at Work” by Anne Summers and began sobbing before I was half way through. I remember seeing the signs that said “ditch [...]
I have long been astounded by the manner in which Australia treats its current Prime Minister. I don’t read all of the news reports from Oz, and I’m unfamiliar with some of the episodes cited by dissidents against this lecture. I can certainly say with personal certainty that past PM John Howard suffered nothing like this sort of vilification – allegations to the contrary are the most unmitigated and utter bullshit. I think Australia has descended into a hell of stupidity and moral debasement from which I see no redemption. I am ashamed that we Canadians ever shared the Commonwealth with such a gang of evil slime buckets as now peoples that otherwise beautiful continent.
Ouch. We’re not all evil slime buckets. I’m sure your beautiful country also has its share of right-wing crazies but I’m not going to lump you all together and call you a “gang”.
I totally agree with what you have said, I do think Tony Abbott has a lot to answer for in relation to the contempt he shows the Prime Minister.The media in this country no longer reports the news rather they create stories aimed squarely at populism.Abbott needs to be held accountable for the things he say’s I would be willing to guess the tide may turn from vilification of the Prime Minister if people saw Abbott for what he is.The truth is rarely evident in the persecution of Julia Gillard personally I think she is a remarkable woman, to have the grace she displays doing a impossible job.I doubt there would be many people who could hold there tongue and not have a dummy spit under that constant attacks that she is subjected to everyday.Australia needs a Ambassador with diplomacy and tact with the balance of strength and co-operation on the world scale to show we are a grown up player in this world,can anyone imagine how the world would see us if we chose Tony Abbott as Prime Minister not well I would think.
It’d be good if Anne replied. Is this in defence of the Gina Rineheart fat jokes too? Even more importantly is it in defence of all genders and political PoV?
I remember the very bitter abuse of John Howards’ image on some mardi gras floats. It was harsh, but it, to me, seemed that in the name of free speech and freedom of expression it was let slide. I remember wondering on it. I expect a few people did.
Great article. Australia could be such a better Country if strong women like yourself and Julia Gillard were treated with the respect that they deserve
Alan
Anne,
I don’t recall you ever speaking up on the topic of vilification of politicians when John Howard and Peter Costello were copping it daily. Perhaps you did, but I can find no proof of this. Your appeals for decorum and respect would carry a lot more weight if you had. I can recall all sorts of sexual innuendo and down right abuse being directed Howard’s way, but there was not a murmur of protest about this. Tell me when has Julia been portrayed as a dog sniffing George Bush’s bum ? And when has Julia had a shoe thrown at her in a TV studio, and this happening after the national broadcaster televised a tweet encouraging that very action? Which side of politics smashed down the doors of Parliament and raided the gift shop? Which party’s politicians stood to address that mob shortly before the “action”? Were they expressing respect do you think?
You are right to appeal for a better standard of debate, but with the bullied media about to be put under surveillance, is it any wonder that people will start to look for alternative voices, that yes, are rude and crude, but at least carry better levels of credibility.
Many thanks Anne. This is great, and long overdue. Thanks also to my facebook friends who shared it
Anne Summers, thank you. I am sick to death of this stuff being dismissed as ‘robust debate’ or the ‘rough and tumble of politics.’ It is vile. It is unlike the criticism men receive. ENOUGH with people denying its severity and its gendered hatred.
Any mention of the abuse directed at Gina Rinehart, from the media, from Swan, from internet blogs? Oh, I see, she a conservative female so that’s acceptable.
And has Ms Summers apologized for her slurs and defamatory article in The Monthly? As Bolt put it:
“I am pleased that The Monthly has removed from its website a despicable defamation of my wife that was written by Anne Summers in her “profile” of me. Actually, I presume that was the reason for what it’s done, since the magazine removed not only that vile smear but the whole tawdry article with it. This raises the question: was the editor also worried about the many other laughable errors, from my supposed previous “engagement” to the apparent assumption that some clearly fake Twitter account was actually mine? Did the magazine perhaps regret the shameless smearing of my late mother? The pathetic sledging of my wife by an unnamed ex-girlfriend of mine from more than a quarter of a century ago? Who knows?
Still waiting for a public apology to my wife, though. ”
Oh, I guess it’s another case of rules for some but not for conservatives.
[...] Anne Summers recently gave an important and shocking speech about the treatment of our Prime [...]
Anne,
I think you may suffer from a little sexism yourself. To even pretend that Abbott, Rudd, Howard, Keating don’t receive hate is disingenuous. If you made an equal attempt to defend them you would find some amazing filth. I bet if everyone was saying they are waiting on their porches in Queensland with baseball bats for Gillard- you would be quoting that as proof of the intimidation Australia, mainly males (who else plays baseball) are trying on Gillard. Imagine if they were calling Gillard that Lying Little Rodent- you would be quoting that as proof people were trying to undermine her authority.
As far as I can tell, Gillard is getting it worse but like you say she was so popular as Deputy and the groundswell was enormous when she took over. Gillard has lost the people, or a good many of them, and the credit goes at least partly to the opposition and Abbott. It sounds as if you would legislate against this filth and nastiness- maybe it is the right thing to do, maybe you can silence it, but I suspect Gillard’s popularity won’t improve from it, if anything she will lose those who are inclined to sympathy. I trust you’re willing to allow the people the free will to vote against her for whatever mean and nasty reasons they might have- that of course is the beauty of Democracy with a wide franchise like in our system.
It’s dreadful, isn’t it? Almost as dreadful as when Howard was subjected to vile abuse from many quarters – including SBS and the ABC. Where was Anne Summers then? Did she speak out then? Ah, no. Why? Because Howard was a conservative and a male.
It seems the Left can dish it out in bucket loads but cry sexism! misogynistic! when the same abuse is directed at one of theirs who happens to be a female. Clearly, rules for some not others.
Thank you Anne, you’ve illustrated the sexist, vitriolic disrespect Prime Minister Gillard is subject to not just from fringe loonies but from influential mainstream figures. There’s also a wider issue of general lack of respect for Australian public figures which exasperates me.
But it’s important to keep the argument focused on the specific sexist content against the PM. Drops in popularity after a honeymoon period are common for a newly elected leader. The leaks from Rudd et al were presumably foreseeable and poorly handled by the PM’s team. If the argument is that the leaks were damaging particularly due to sexist content, then this isn’t proved in your speech.
The ‘it stops with me’ is a powerful meme. I bet it’ll stick. Well done again.
Truly, is this a joke?
You trawled the depths of the internet and found some crass pictures of a politician?
Dear Anne, perhaps you could now trawl the net and find and post the photo of ABC personanalities beating an effigy of John Howard hung from a tree, the paper mache where he’s a dog sniffing then President Bush’s behind that was regularly shown on prime time news, or the stripper dressed up with a John Howard mask who danced for Bob Hawkes 80th birthday?
Where’s your “outrage” over the ALP organising a stripper for the ex-PM?
What an absolute farce.
To paraphrase most of the comments here: “I’d like to take have the power to silence these people…and Tony Abbott and the Liberal party and, well, all of my political enemies – all in the name of tolerance of course, nothing sinister”.
Outstanding piece, Ms Summers – and I’ve adopted ‘it stops with me’ too.
This sort of thing, I can only admire if it is of equal concern to both genders. Julia Gillard herself has called Chris Pyne a mincing poodle.
But that insult has nothing to do with him being a man.
Sorry, typo. Offence not offense. Autocorrect!
Congratulations on an excellent piece and wide coverage if it across the mediums. I wonder if Gillard’s could make a referral to the AFP to investigate some of the websites/you tube/Facebook pages to for the general offense under the Criminal Code of using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offense. I believe this conduct could be courted under this section and if it can’t, then it damn well should. I am offended for our Prime Minister.
Thank you Anne
I have always believed treating EVERY person I meet with respect is a priority and persecution is abhorrent. IT STOPS WITH ME so resonates – my new motto.
A fantastic,truthful and illuminating piece . I totally concur and will certainly utilize the It stops with me strategy. I believe misogyny totally underpins these offensive attacks and would love to join with like minded people and submit a public complaint against the perpetrators.
I would love to see a class complaint submitted to the anti discrimination board against the likes of the sexually offensive LP ,the rude and inflammatory AJ and the aggressively dishonest TA. Anyone got a useful strategy.i think we should fight back in a dignified way and deal with these hostile rednecks!
Thanks for this information. I have also seen the Larry Pickering memes on Julia, think they should ban him as they are disgusting! As for the Tony Abbott ones they are getting a bit boring now & will stop in time. If Julia had not been a female (& barron they say?) she would not get this disturbing attention. I think she can handle it & therefore have more respect for her. Thank you for your speech Anne.
You are obviously a very intelligent woman. The fact that I hardly agree with anything you’ve written in this article doesn’t diminish your intelligence.
Could you be any more patronising?
Compulsory and compelling reading. Highly Recommended. I’ve had fights with trolls on The Age website on exactly this subject, I wasn’t brave enough to stand their tirade of abuse, so I stopped fighting them. Anne Summers says it so much more succinctly and elegantly than I ever could.
Thank you Ms Summers. An extremely disturbing and confronting article which really get to the heart of something which has been troubling me for quite sometime. Finally someone has the courage to say it like it is. There is something really foul going on in our democracy and it is time that many people were called to account.
Recently I received an email from a friendly work colleague after the first of Julia Gillard’s slight increase in poll ratings after the carbon tax began. The headline “FLYING START” had been changed to “LYING TART” and was being sent around. I felt very lonely when I was the only one to write back and suggest that it was not suitable to send around to work colleagues. I was told I needed to “lighten up”. However I also had come the conclusion that like the Jewish situation in WW2, we have to say “it stops with me… ENOUGH!!”
Your article has spurred me on to become more involved in this whole issue – it is simply NOT acceptable and everyone involved, whether politicians, journos, or colleagues need to account for their words. Thank you for your courage.
Hey Dr Summers,
You obviously hit a nerve.
You might be interested to know you just received your first comment from one of the trolls(Miney) that frequents the PMs Facebook Page.
Loved your speech by the way.
thank you very much this speech is what I have been trying to say on twitter along with the hype and half truths of Main stream media and the vicousness of Mr Abbotts slogans thanks its a great speech
I’m alarmed at the way women are represented and treated in Australia. I would be interested to know just how much involvement the PM’s opposition (both in her own party and the opposition party) have in the creation of those images and cartoons. I have lived in Australia for several years and it seems to me that our society here has become increasingly aggressive towards women and also towards different races. Much of that has been driven by divisive policies and statements from those supposed to lead us.
At the women-only gym the other day – a place full of Avon pamphlets and breast cancer-pink stuff – I was trying to punch the swinging punching bag. I wasn’t doing a very good job, having never done this before. The staffer suggested I imagine punching someone I didn’t like. I was processing this suggestion when the woman next to me suggested I imagine the face of “Julia” on the punching bag. I was shocked and failed to reply before the “hilarity” moved on. I live in a regional town that is served by its own commercial radio station. Until fairly recently, it ran only local news and talk. But now we get hours of syndicated shock jockery and it is really making a (vile) difference.
Thank you for the article, and yes it is a total disgrace by our media and by people in general.
If a male prime minister had of achieved what Ms Gillard has in her term as Prime Minister they would be lauded as one of the greats.
She is one of the greats – and not all males treat her with such disrespect.
As a bloke I have become increasingly disheartened by the lack of respect shown to our Prime Minister by the internet commentators, politicians, journalists and the general public. I always address the PM as Prime Minister Gillard even when I don’t agree with her, while the likes of Alan Jones and Mr Tony Abbott have shown no respect for the office of Prime Minister.
The political climate has become so poisonous that I fear for the future of Australian democracy and public debate. If Mr Tony Abbott were to become Prime Minister, the reaction of his opponents would rightly be angry and equally as confrontational. What happens next?
Congratulation Dr Summers on tackling this issue, unfortunatley in this country Social Justice in many area is dead and buried, bringing this issue out into the open when most of us are aware of the under currents is a brave move, well done!
Your a joke.
If you look around you can see lots of Nasty stuff about Tony Abbott.
I guess that is okay since he is male.
You are using sexism as an excuse that is all.
A PM commands respect well she lost that when she lied to us .
Miney, you don’t mention the lie John Howard told…never ever have a GST, etc. I think you are missing the point.
Abbott has never had to put up with the level of vitriol that has been directed at Gillard.
Summers is making the point – and extremely well, with mountains of irrefutable evidence – that much of the criticism of Gillard is sexist, and not just mildly sexist, it’s extreme hate-speech.
The justification her enemies use, that she “lied” about the carbon tax, is no excuse. Male politicians have said one thing and done another for generations: Abbott himself backflipped on a Medicare election promise after an election, yet is not held to the same measure. And of course, it is conveniently forgotten that Labor does not govern in its own right. Gillard had to seek compromise with the independents and the Greens on climate change action. If Labor had been elected in its own right there would have been an ETS, not a carbon “tax”, as per the election policy.
To me, Gillard is an exceptional leader, with true grit. Not perfect (I don’t like asylum seeker policy nor her opposition to equal marriage) but she has led Labor far more ably than Rudd did, and has achieved some great things for the country in a short amount of time. Long may she reign.
The insults levelled at Tony Abbott are primarily on his policies and fashion sense, and are not of a threatening manner.
I have never seen anyone threaten his life publicly without any punishment, nor have I seen anyone using sexual insults against him. (I am sure that this is merely the tip of the iceberg; given what is directed at women in the gaming community and female activists, this is nothing. It only gets worse.)
Men are not an oppressed group (try Googling ‘male privilege’ sometime; being male means never being threatened with sexual assault, violence or murder simply because you are in a position of power). Sexism has at times been directed at men, but men will never suffer on the scale that women do because of it. And this isn’t just sexism, it’s misogyny.
This is not the disease, just a symptom. You think Julia Gillard is the only woman in Australia treated like this on a daily basis? Excuse me if I can’t laugh for the nausea. She isn’t; she’s simply the only one famous enough for anyone to pay any attention to it. Women all over Australia get this and much worse on a daily basis. We should all be standing up.
And telling our stories. Not to de-legitimize hers, but to illustrate – it’s not because she’s famous, it’s not because she’s an atheist, it’s not because she’s a politician, it’s not because she’s in the Labor Party – Julia Gillard gets this treatment because she is a woman and only because she is a woman.
And there is no ‘growing a thick skin’. This is not snide comments; this is death threats and threats of sexual violence. And why the hell should we have to deal with it? We didn’t ask to be born female. We weren’t given a choice in the matter. Why the hell should we have to put up with this shit because apparently most men simply can’t handle the fact that we exist.)
Granted, no mention has been made of the abuse levelled at other influential female figures (Penny Wong, Gina Rinehart, probably others I can’t remember) but this article is specifically focused on the highest possible political position in Australia, that of Prime Minister. (And in non-political workplaces, policies are generally adhered to much more strongly. While I’m sure Gina Rinehart has had abuse flung at her in the workplace, more than likely said abusers were at the least given a first-and-final and told to clean up their act or find another job, and I’m sure any threats against her person were thoroughly investigated – because HPPL Group, like most other companies, would take that seriously, apparently unlike political workplaces.)
Serious question now – those people posting death threats, why haven’t they been arrested or at least gotten a visit from the cops? In ANY other workplace if someone is making death threats against an employee, it’s reported to police immediately. Given the constant screeching about ‘terrorism’ and ‘terror attacks’, you’d think the Parliament would take any threats against any politicians VERY seriously. There are some real nutcases out there (look up Gabrielle Giffords sometime; politics is a very dangerous job).
Dear Dr. Summers, Your speech, while confronting, was also refreshing. My friends and I have been appalled at the way Prime Minister Gillard is being treated in the media and through FB and email, but we had no idea of the extent of her vilification. Thank you for bringing it to public attention. I have confronted people , including my red necked brother,who send me sexist emails about our PM by replying to all and telling people how wrong they are. This usually results in lots of abuse, including telling me to get on a leaky boat and to go back where I come from, (NSW actually)
. However, I will become more vocal and active and am excited to be part of “destroythe joint.” There is nothing like angered women to bring about change! Thank you.
It is such a sad and depressing indictment of the australian intellect that we have sunk to these depths. Where is the respect, regardless of how we feel on a personal level about our PM? The rude and unfair criticism of another human being, regardless of position, has extended to the masses and is redolent of past hysterias through history. Politicians and media specifically, are charged with the responsibility of challenging, interrogating, investigating and reporting but NEVER participating in this disgusting level of attack which only serves to incite further irrational comment from the public. I’m embarrassed to be an Australian and worry about overseas perceptions. I don’t want to be tarred with the same brush as these radio announcers/cartoonists/journalists and politicians. I prefer to keep my manners in tact, display a respectful attitude and function at a higher level of intelligence.
i had absolutely no idea such a level of hatred and misogyny was continuously levelled at the PM.
more astounding were the charlie pickering cartoons – i knew he had set up a website. but the level of unrelenting mail sent to EVERY parliamentarian?? And no one reported on it?? That dropped my jaw.
thanks for the education anne, it stops with me
Larry Pickering NOT CHarlie!!!
Dear Dr. Summers (note that women are rarely given their titles) Thank you so much for writing this piece. I am starting to feel frightened of misogyny in Australia, and I have rarely been worried about it as a serious threat to my person before. The hatred of women expressed by the soldiers in their video recently, the contempt expressed by Alan Jones, Tony Abbott, Christopher Pyne and others for our Prime Minister, and the seriously deranged Larry Pickering, and the general contempt expressed everywhere are truly alarming.
I would like to see a group of leading Australian men get together, or even individually go on TV and express outrage at his trend and demand that we all show respect for all women, women in power and women who aspire to high office.
Thank you, thank you, thank you Ms Summers!
I have been waiting for someone to say this clearly for two years!
I was overjoyed when you wrote your first major article about this: The Gender Agenda, then dismayed when the whole issue was swallowed again by the media silence.
Though I have seen plenty of sexism and abuse in the media and elsewhere, I have been so demoralised and depressed by the apparently growing social acceptance of racist and misogynist attitudes here. Silence tacitly condones intimidation and abuse and this is a real threat to democracy in our country.
Thank you Anne for ‘calling’ this as gender hatred. I’m from NZ and similar things happened for Helen Clarke but not to the public and vulgar extent that you document. I find it astonishing that in a country, supposedly proud of its creed of “a fair go” this treatment is a) meted out and b) does not face a stronger backlash from either the media or people in general; or a pushback from her peers and women in public/corporate life. I’m relatively new to this country but what I observe is a very traditional social culture and discourse; a willingness to sexualise women inappropriately; and a reluctance to let women be the diversity of beings we are. It is diminishing of all Australians that our Prime Minister is spoken about and visualised in the ways you’ve shown. I hope that we can start a consciousness raising movement to say “enough is enough”.
Thanks so much for your comments Anne. Australian women need to stand up against this sexist vitriol. It harms every woman. You may be interested to know that a group of feminists, upset by the abusive vitriol composed an open letter. It has been signed by over 100 individuals and over 50 organisations throughout Australia. It can be found on WEAVE (Women Everywhere Advocating Violence Elimination) website -http://weaveinc.org.au
Thank you once again and lets hope that women rise up and denounce such abusive and misogynistic language and behaviour.
Anne, I think this speech is a much needed wake up call for all of Australia. People in our country(male and female) have become so unconcerned about the way things are heading backwards when it comes to equal opportunity. Not just in politics either, but across the board. The speech that you have written proves that Australians are incapable of accepting the fact that a woman is in control. It makes me angry and makes me feel belittled as a woman to see these things happening in a place that is supposed to have respect for people in power. She worked hard to get the position (just like everyone before her) and deserves a chance. I know that it happens everywhere as I have personally experienced sexism in the workplace on countless occasions. I have had to leave positions because of it and start again countless times, only for the harassment to start all over again in another setting. I never had disgusting cartoons of me drawn and circulated in the public though!!!! I don’t agree with all of Julia Gillard’s policies, but I don’t think we have EVER seen as much sexism in parliament as we do today.
Congratulations to Anne for approaching this topic. It is more than a worry, I found it very disturbing.
I have received emails and didn’t do anything about it. I regret that after reading Anne’s speech.
What does this say about our society? I would hope that it is a few people and not the many who engage in this behaviour.
I felt a physical reaction to the few visuals. What must our PM feel like when confronted with this stuff.
[...] what ordinary people are saying about Julia Gillard but does not include the offensive images. The R-RATED VERSION version contains the images. Be prepared to be shocked. I have also included an APPENDIX [...]
Thank you Ms Summers for a very disturbing lecture. When I first was aware of the extreme vilification against our Prime Minister, I commented to anyone who would bother to listen (or read) that the underlying foundation for much of the invective, to put it gently, was and is, to me, was that Ms Gillard is our very first Prime Minister who was female.
When you think about the whole political framework it is clearly created by male brains. It is combative, rather than cooperative; the “goodies” ie the Government are seated on one side, the right side of the Speaker and the “baddies” ie the Opposition are ensconced on the left; it is rigidly hierarchical; it is based on mateship which is a superficial; it is closeted and secretive – in fact, the whole political structure are so male enforced politically ambitious females to prove themselves more intelligent, more rugged, more “strong”, more powerful, more religious, more family oriented (for females, swap the phrase “family oriented” with “motherly”), better dressed though not over-the-top, but less emotional than her average female constituent, than their male counterparts.
When you think about our politicians, it is us the voters who put them in parliament in order to pursue OUR interests not their partys’interests. Politics is about raw power – male power. It simply can’t be any other kind because males invented way way back when.
Females, as we all know and appreciate, have a different view and appreciation about human relationships. Not necessarily better but clearly different. We know this because females maintain female relationships longer than males do with their mates. Females will, without thinking, present gifts to their female friends and colleagues whereas this would never occur to male, that is, without a female suggesting it of course.
So our Prime Minister has obviously great ambitions not only for herself but for her nation otherwise why would she or any female put up with and need to endure the inherent sexism within the male constructed environment. In order to carry our her ambitions she needs has had to make sacrifices that most females would not choose to make. She has had to rise above the male paradigm and break through it all in order to get her vision into reality. Not easy for any politician, never mind a female pollie.
This is why those who hurl vindictive slurs and those who suggest that there are many males, like Keating or Howard or, really any other political leader prior to our current PM endured same or similar insults, they were all male who were acting out as male politicians in a very masculine environment where leadership was fashioned in the male style. Our current Prime Minister being female is a pioneer in Australian politics who is showing she can show strong and determined leadership while also not fearing showing her humanity for people in a way male politicians dare not for fear of being view as “weak” or “girlie”. We Australians are not used to be lead by a female Prime Minister who is leading by example. I just hope that we able to mature as a voting public sufficiently so that by the time my 4 year grand-daughter decides, if she chooses politics as a career, she can rise to the top an focus on putting her visions into reality without being weghed down with the sexist crap that male politicians do not have to endure.