Coming to office in 2010, Julia Gillard was Australia’s first and only female prime minister. Throughout her term, she faced exceptional criticism from the media and her fellow politicians, often driven by misogyny.
From her successor, Tony Abbot, holding press-conferences in front of signs reading “Ditch the witch”, to the right-wing Liberal Party’s fundraiser boasting on the menu “Julia Gillard Kentucky Fried Quail – small breasts, huge thighs, and a big red box”, Gillard faced enormous amounts of misogyny. While the media chose to give her gendered criticism of her fashion and unwed status, Gillard passed 570 bills in the senate, with key achievements including the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
Her treatment in politics as a woman was not unique. Research by Blair Williams shows that the attitude towards women in politics is getting worse. Her findings revealed Gillard was treated more harshly by the media than Margaret Thatcher was, despite the thirty-year difference.
In 2012, Gillard delivered her powerful and famous “misogyny speech”, which was voted in 2020 the most “unforgettable moment” in Australian TV history. However, it must be considered that on the same day the speech was delivered, her government passed welfare reforms that reduced single-parent payments by up to $100 a week,
disproportionality affecting women. We must reflect on how the desire to drown out Gillard’s sexist portrayals resulted in her falling into “girl-boss” culture, causing many to idolise her instead of remaining critical of her not as a woman, but as a politician.
Written by Josie
Artwork by Mrishana
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