Shane Broad’s sexist attack must be condemned by White

Sarah Courtney,Minister for Women

It is appalling the sexist attack by Labor Member for Braddon, Shane Broad, on Attorney-General, Elise Archer, has not yet been publicly condemned by Labor Leader Rebecca White.

Yesterday in Parliament, Dr Broad, said;

“We have a minister who, if she put on a show in the prison, no doubt it would be a sell-out.”

In an extraordinary turn of events, Dr Broad last night sought to amend the Hansard record to cover his tracks and told the ABC it was merely word play*.

He doubled down today in Parliament by claiming his blatantly sexist attack was merely a pun, while refusing to apologise for his actions.

Labor Members of Parliament are quick to remind us that words matter, in July Labor Member for Bass, Michelle O’Byrne said**;

“If you disrespect women in any way you create an environment where women are seen as lesser, as having lesser agency. That ingrained perception diminishes the way that women participate and actually leads to the violence that we see against women in our society. Not all disrespect towards women ends in violence but all violence against women starts with disrespectful behaviour.”

“Language shapes reality. The things we say become the things we imagine and the things that we do.”

It seems it’s one rule for Labor MPs and a different one for everyone else.

It’s about time Rebecca White held her Labor Members to the same standard.

* https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-09-25/tas-daily-briefing-25th-september/11544516

** House of Assembly Hansard, 31 July 2019

/Public Release. View in full here.