This Australian politician called out her sIut-shaming bullies: 'Real men don’t insult and threaten women'
Memo to men: Sen. Sarah Hanson-Young is taking names.
At a Senate chamber session in Australia, Hanson-Young took down her seχist bullies, singling them out individually. “I will name you because you are not fit to be in this chamber, you’re not fit to represent your constituents, and you’re not fit to call yourselves men,” she boldly declared.
The South Australia senator’s blistering speech came as a response to comments made by Sen. Barry O’Sullivan who insinuated that Hanson-Young had seχual relations with former Sen. Nick Xenophon. O’Sullivan went as far as saying, “There’s a bit of Nick Xenophon in her. I don’t mean that to be a double reference, but there’s a bit of Xenophon in her.”
Australian Green Party leader Richard Di Natale immediately called out O’Sullivan for being “a pig” and protested the toxic environment in the country’s federal parliament that allows for “seχist filth” to deter female representatives from running.
The heated argument came hours after Australian Sen. Julia Banks announced her resignation from O’Sullivan’s party, citing a culture of bullying and harassment in Australia’s Liberal National Party. She will continue to legislate on the “crossbench” as an independent senator.
Hanson-Young then took the floor to defend herself.
After thanking Di Natale, Hanson-Young declared “that is what real men do. … They don’t sIut-shame them and they don’t attack [women] and make them feel bullied in their workplace.”
The 36-year-old senator then ripped into the men who made “reprehensible” insults, singling out O’Sullivan, Sen. Fraser Anning, Sen. Cori Bernardi and Sen. David Leyonhjelm.
“You, day after day, come into this place, hurl insults across this chamber, and play the gender card and, the moment anyone stands up to you, you have the most fragile glass jaws of all,” said Hanson-Young. “You are cowards. … And I, for one, am sick of it, and I know many of my female colleagues on all sides of politics are sick of it too.”
Read Sen. Sarah Hanson-Young’s full statement here:
As the person in this chamber whom the reprehensible and disgusting comments were directed to by Sen. O’Sullivan, I want to make it very clear that I am thankful to Sen. Di Natale for standing up and calling them out.
That is what real men do. Real men don’t insult and threaten women, and they don’t slut-shame them and they don’t attack them and make them feel bullied in their workplace.
I have sat in this chamber for weeks and weeks – months – and heard the disgusting slurs and attacks coming from a particular group in this place. And I, for one, am sick of it, and I know many of my female colleagues on all sides of politics are sick of it, too. And I will name you because you are not fit to be in this chamber, you’re not fit to represent your constituents and you’re not fit to call yourselves men: Sen. O’Sullivan, Sen. Anning, Sen. Bernardi and Sen. Leyonhjelm.
You day after day come into this place, hurl insults across this chamber and play the gender card and, the moment anyone stands up to you, you have the most fragile glass jaws of all. You are cowards. Every time you get called out, you refuse to stand by it.
Thank you, Sen. Wong. I stand by the decision of our leader, Richard Di Natale. He uttered the words that Sen. O’Sullivan was a pig. He was asked to withdraw and he has refused. I back him in that.
However, I do reflect on what Sen. Wong has just called for, and that is a little more decorum in this place.
