Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard made waves on the internet on October 9 when she lambasted the opposition leader for sexism in a 15-minute address to the House of Commons. It’s gotten lots of people talking about modern-day gender issues and what really defines “misogynistic behavior”. Her speech has even led to an updated definition of “misogyny” in the Australian Macquarie Dictionary, not to mention a flurry of tweets, likes, and news comments.
To set the stage, Australian Speaker of the House Peter Slipper had been charged with harassment by a gay, former employee. After text message evidence had been released where Slipper used offensive slang involving female genitalia, opposition leader Tony Abbott pushed forward a motion to out Slipper from Parliament for the sexist comments. Gillard then rose to defend Slipper, claiming that if Slipper were to lose his job for sexist behavior, then surely Abbott should resign as well. She listed countless examples of misogynistic conduct she experienced from Abbott and quoted his blatantly sexist views on women in power.
Her point was that Abbott should not use sexism as a means to get Slipper fired when he himself does not know the meaning of the word. The motion to fire Slipper was narrowly defeated, but he voluntarily retired due to the circumstances. However, anything to do with Slipper’s offensive comments has been grossly overshadowed by Gillard’s impassioned defense of women’s rights in Australia. With well over 2 million Youtube views, her comments are flying around the word and her popularity in the polls is rising – including among men. The speech contains many personal accusations and is worth a watch (or two). Gillard opens with “If he wants to know what misogyny looks like in modern Australia, he doesn’t need a motion in the House of Commons, he needs a mirror.” She touches on Abbott’s personal friendship with Slipper, Abbott’s beliefs that women are naturally less capable of making decisions, and Abbott posing by “Ditch the Witch” posters aimed at Gillard.
Yes, it’s clear to see why people are hailing her for standing up for women’s rights and calling out Abbott on his double standard. What the critics are saying is that Gillard misused the word “misogyny” and in doing so called Abbott a woman-hater. In response to this, Australia’s leading dictionary updated its definition of the word from “pathological hatred against women” to also “entrenched prejudice against women”. They justified this because in common use, people use “misogyny” as a stronger synonym of “sexism”, which already has a more broad definition. Is this a blatant political move by the dictionary that misuses its intended purpose? That is also what the critics are saying.
Regardless of semantics, it is very clear what Gillard meant in her address to the House, which is that she “will always be offended by sexism” no matter what form it takes, and that Abbott’s criticism of Slipper was a double standard. The fact that her speech has circulated worldwide and received an outcry of support shows that she is not the only woman out there offended by prejudice against women. It can be blatant or subtle, but it all adds up (which is an essay-length editorial in itself) and it’s a relief to see someone call it like it is. Keeping quiet is not the way to reverse stereotypes and discrimination, as Julia Gillard is proving. While Abbott accuses her party of not having enough child-raising experience the very next week, Gillard insists that she sticks by every word of her speech. Unless he apologizes and changes his behavior (as per Gillard’s suggestion), it’s probably safe to say that Abbott will have a hard time recovering from this one.
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