Misogyny Speech

This article is part of a series about
Julia Gillard

Deputy Prime Minister of Australia

Prime Minister of Australia


The Misogyny Speech was delivered by then Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard on 9 October 2012 in reaction to alleged sexism from opposition leader Tony Abbott.[1]

Background

The Opposition Leader at the time, Tony Abbott, had risen in parliament with a motion to have Peter Slipper removed as Speaker over crude and sexist texts Slipper had sent to an aide.[2] Gillard made statements in support of Slipper and attempted to link Abbott's motion to remarks made by Alan Jones in the then-recent Alan Jones shame controversy.[3][4] Gillard said that "every day in every way" Abbott was sexist and misogynist.[1][5]

Reactions

The speech was criticised by some Australian journalists but attracted widespread interest and much positive attention in blogs and social media. Expat Chloe Angyal wrote for Britain's The Guardian that the speech tackled "sexism head-on" and was a "masterful, righteous take-down"[6] and similar opinions were expressed by other expatriate Australian journalists.[3][7][8] Britain's Daily Telegraph women's editor said that Gillard had cleverly shifted the focus of the news story with "an impressive set of insults".[9] Within a week, a YouTube version of the speech had had one million views. As of 2014 the ABC news video has 2.6 million views[10] The context of the Labor Party's support for Peter Slipper however meant that commentary from domestic journalists was far more critical, with Michelle Grattan writing "it sounded more desperate than convincing", Peter Hartcher that Gillard "chose to defend the indefensible" and Peter van Onselen that the government had "egg on their collective faces".[11][12] The public reaction was also polarised: approval ratings of Gillard and Abbott both improved following the speech.[13][14]

Gillard told media that she had been approached by world leaders who congratulated her on her speech at the 2012 Asia-Europe Meeting, including French President François Hollande and Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt.[15] Gillard told press that United States President Barack Obama had also raised her speech when she phoned to congratulate him for his victory in the 2012 United States election.[16][17]

Abbott's response

“ I will not be lectured about sexism and misogyny by this man; I will not. ”
— Julia Gillard, on Tony Abbott

Abbott discussed the speech with Annabel Crabb on her TV show Kitchen Cabinet in September 2013 ahead of the 2013 federal election, saying “it was a very unfair speech, I thought, and it was a completely invalid speech in terms of responding to the issue of that day; it was just an invalid thing to say. But look, politics is about theatre and at the time I didn’t think it was very effective theatre at all. But plainly it did strike a chord in a lot of people who had not followed the immediate problem that had brought on that particular parliamentary debate."[18]

Results of the speech

After Gillard's speech went viral, the Macquarie Dictionary updated its definition of the term "misogyny".[19][20] Previously defined as a "hatred of women" by the Australian dictionary, misogyny now encompasses "entrenched prejudices of women."[21] Director of The Australian National Dictionary Centre in Canberra, Dr Laugesen said the broader definition has a long history, with the original Oxford English Dictionary defining misogyny as "hatred or dislike or prejudice against women" and examples dating back to the 19th century.[22]

References

  1. 1 2 Ireland, Judith; Wright, Jessica (9 October 2012). "Coalition fails to oust Slipper". National Times. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  2. ↑ Farr, Malcolm (9 October 2012). "REVEALED: What Peter Slipper's sexist text messages actually said". News.com.au. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  3. 1 2 Lester, Amelia (9 October 2012). "Ladylike: Julia Gillard’s Misogyny Speech". The New Yorker. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
  4. ↑ McDonald, Mark (11 October 2012). "Australian Leader Unleashes Blistering Speech". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
  5. ↑ "Gillard labels Abbott a misogynist" (video). Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 9 October 2012. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  6. ↑ Angynl, Chloe (9 October 2010). "It's good to see Julia Gillard tackle sexism head-on". Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  7. ↑ Attard, Monica (10 October 2012). "Australia's prime minister comes out swinging in sexism row". CNN. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  8. ↑ "Julia Gillard, Australia Prime Minister, Launches Blistering Attack On Sexism During Parliament Speech". Huffington Post. 10 October 2012. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  9. ↑ Gardiner, Stephanie (10 December 2012). "Julia 'badass' Gillard: Slipper resignation just a sidebar". The Sydney Morning Herald (Fairfax Media). Archived from the original on 25 July 2013.
  10. ↑ Henderson, Gerard (16 October 2012). "Short-sighted see hate at every turn". The Sydney Morning Herald (Fairfax Media). Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
  11. ↑ Whyte, Sally (10 October 2012). "Gillard fires up, Slipper fired: the pundits’ verdict". Crikey.
  12. ↑ Holmes, Jonathan (15 October 2012). "The speech that burst the press gallery's bubble". Media Watch. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
  13. ↑ "PM has slight edge after sexism row: poll". The Australian. AAP. 15 October 2012. Archived from the original on 15 October 2012.
  14. ↑ Federal politics – voting intention, Essential Vision, 5 August 2013, archived from the original on 12 August 2013
  15. ↑ World leaders praise Gillard sexism speech at ASEM, AustralianTimes.co.uk, 8 November 2012, retrieved 21 October 2013
  16. ↑ Coorey, Phillip (10 November 2012). "Now it's Obama's turn to praise Gillard speech". The Sydney Morning Herald (Fairfax Media). Retrieved 21 October 2013.
  17. ↑ Grattan, Michelle (10 November 2012). "Obama aware of misogyny speech". The Sydney Morning Herald (Fairfax Media).
  18. ↑ Presenter: Annabel Crabb (4 September 2013). "Tony Abbott". Kitchen Cabinet. Season 3. Episode 7. ABC Television. ABC1.
  19. ↑ Gillard's speech prompts misogyny definition rethink, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 17 October 2012, archived from the original on 20 August 2013, retrieved 5 September 2013
  20. ↑ "Misogyny definition to change after Gillard speech", The Sydney Morning Herald, 17 October 2012, archived from the original on 18 October 2012, retrieved 5 September 2013
  21. ↑ Summers, Anne (November 2012). "Her rights at work: the political persecution of Australia's first female prime minister". Economic and Labour Relations Review 23 (4): 115. ISSN 1035-3046. Retrieved 21 October 2013.
  22. ↑ "Misogyny definition to change after Gillard speech", The Sydney Morning Herald, 17 October 2012, archived from the original on 18 October 2012, retrieved 12 June 2014

External links

Transcript and video

Selected further media coverage

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