Grace Falconer was witnessing hatred hurled at Gillard.“It definitely impacted what I thought of politics,” the 22-year-old said. “I was 11 at the time but it was horrible that she was being called a witch and especially by the opposition leader. It definitely influenced me and clearly a lot of other Australian women.“Everything that’s happened to Brittany Higgins and Grace Tame since, who have been so brave to speak up … it’s probably why so many women feel politics is not a place for them.”Intifar Chowdhury“The people pulling the strings of the country don’t reflect the people they represent. When you look at the parliament you don’t see yourself if you’re a young woman. It’s still a boys club,” she said.“Gillard’s famous speech summed up the atrocities that a woman has to face within the walls of parliament, from what you wear to whether you are married or not,” Chowdhury said.Susanne LegenaAustralia’s 47th parliament is the most diverse in history“What we see [in the media] we just associate a politician with a white, privileged man, so how would that represent my views and why would I get involved in politics?” Falconer said.“We’re definitely moving in the right direction but we definitely need to keep that momentum going because creating a sustained culture that is really inclusive and diverse will take time.”“It’s very easy to turn that disenfranchisement into ‘oh young people are disengaged’ but that is not true in Australia,” she said.oung people in Australia go quite against the international current and are actually more engaged in political issues, she said, likely in part because of our compulsory voting laws. But the way people engage is changing.“People are trying to be active in non-elite channels. You might see a decline in party memberships but young people are more active online or in demonstrations,” she said.“People are increasingly turning away from party-directed ways of political engagement but at a grassroots level the discourse is directed by the issue, rather than the parties.”compassionate, understanding and introspective”.
The post Young Aus Women Are Jaded By Politics — Growing Up In The Gillard Era May Have Played A Part appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
