Australian women have been most effective, politically, when they have harnessed their collective rage and turned it into action. They need to do it again now. Like many Australians, I was delighted when activist Grace Tame was named the 2021 Australian of the Year. Tame is a powerful advocate for survivors of child sexual abuse,…
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There are lively discussions going on about the gendered impacts of coronavirus and how so much policy tends to be male-centric. It might not be intentional, but the problem with unconscious bias is it doesn’t see what it doesn’t want to know. The current crisis has brought to the forefront the size and importance of…
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There’s a rookie female politician who is gaining the ire of her colleagues and the way she’s coping with her newfound platform is particularly interesting. Her name is Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, or AOC as the US media often refers to her, and she is refusing to be another notch on the sexist media’s belt. Indeed,…
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The stark divergence between the left and the right is growing, with party leaders continually pushing boundaries further to the edges. This extremist divide causes unjust and inhumane policies, such as the recent Manus Island standoff. As someone with left-winged ideologies, it is bewildering to see why and how politicians make the personal choice to…
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‘Connie got up from her kitchen table and walked slowly to the door…’ So begins Marge Piercy’s feminist sci-fi classic, Woman on the Edge of Time, an allegorical tale of a woman who can communicate with the future and in doing so stirs a yearning for a more egalitarian world. I am reading it at…
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Dear Michelle Obama, My name is Christine Anu. I come from humble beginnings in the Torres Strait Islands, located off the top of North Queensland, Australia. Growing up we survived on fish, mango and damper. We had no electricity or money and there was a housing shortage. Domestic violence was rife and there were…
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On 8 November 2016 I found myself watching the Clinton—Trump showdown from a remote town on the Pacific Coast. In its aftermath I joined the masses in experiencing a carnival of emotions, namely, the overwhelming sensation that I had been sucker-punched. I’m now sitting in a sandy cafe listening to a blonde with a drawling accent…
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Dear Hillary, It is with a heavy heart I write you. In the days since the election, I’ve grieved with much of the international community. The outcome of this election has left many scared for what the future holds, especially for women and minorities. I cannot tell you how much I wish this were a letter…
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Dear Mr. Trump, I’d like to start by saying this letter does not come from a strongly political place. These days, I find myself heavily disillusioned with politics in my own country, let alone yours. I have no interest in taking sides and my decision to write this letter was not politically motivated. I felt…
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When Natasha Stott-Despoja was appointed Australia’s Ambassador for Women and Girls in December 2013, she said: ‘I continue to be proud of Australia’s efforts to work with and for the world’s women, and I’m honoured to have been given a chance to contribute to this work.’ In October 2016, when the United Nations appointed Wonder…
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‘Poetry can break open locked chambers of possibility, restore numbed zones to feeling, recharge desire’ – Adrienne Rich Writing to the Wire is a collection of poems about Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers and refugees. Featuring poetry from academics, writers, refugee advocates and refugees themselves, it is a powerful look at our national identity, namely,…
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This is a love letter to domestic violence victims. To the sisters, the mothers, the aunts, the grandmothers. The sophisticated ladies, the spitfire working class woman, the timid girl. The women who are victims of violence within their own homes. You, who have traversed the hallowed roads of hell. This is for you. This is…
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Lip Reading is a column about the books in our lives. Each month, Lip staff and writers share what books have obsessed, delighted, or even saddened them. What have you been reading? We’d love to hear your recommendations. — Donna Lu, Books & Literature Editor * Amy Nicholls-Diver I recently finished The Vegetarian, by Han Kang (translated…
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Campaign 2016 closes up for Australia’s political hopefuls in just two days. Recent research based on Twitter users suggests young people and women are the group most undecided – or more aptly, weighing up their options – about how to exercise their democratic right. As the federal election’s vote grows nearer, sometimes a…
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