A Gold Coast café has donated hundreds of dollars to a charity supporting at-risk women after a sexist Instagram comment inspired its owner to take action.
Seadog café in Burleigh Heads raised $751 for Support The Girls, which provides bras, pads, and tampons to women in need, by donating all of its weekend earnings towards the charity.
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The tiny outpost also offered free coffee to women over those two days. A further $619 was pledged by Seadog’s coffee supplier, and the café was supplied with free milk and baked goods to sell.
Speaking to PEDESTRIAN.TV, owner Brodie Green said the donation drive was sparked by a response to his social media post criticising Alabama‘s strict new abortion laws.
“I had a response from a customer that comes into the cafe here in Burleigh, and he basically said that if women kept their legs shut and if they were on the pill, there would be no need for abortion.”
Green said he nearly let it go, but was inspired by the quote “neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim.”
“This time I was like, ‘nah, fuck it.’ This guy was so nasty and rude, and it’s not supporting women’s rights. It’s kind of going backwards.”
Green told the man that because of what he’d said, Seadog would offer free coffee to women over the whole weekend – and would donate all proceeds to Support The Girls.
The support from women was overwhelming, Green said, but he emphasised the need for other men to step up and defend reproductive rights.
“Even now, I’ve had some incredible responses from men in the public that have come in, but it’s nowhere near as good as what it should be,” Green said.
You know, chicks don’t get pregnant by themselves, do they? With what this guy said on Instagram, if women kept their legs shut, or went on the pill, there’s this thing in a lot of peoples’ heads that it’s the woman’s problem, it’s the woman’s responsibility.
It’s not. By men speaking up and by men being there for the women, you have no idea what it means for these ladies who come in, to know that a male is there talking about this.
I can’t even tell you how many ladies have come in and have just started crying because it means the world to them, that someone is sticking up for them that’s a guy.
Green said last weekend might not be his café’s last fundraising venture.
“Just after seeing what we’ve gone through this week and how much money we’ve raised, I want to triple it, or I want to make something real big to support these guys,” Green said.
Green said a Support The Girls representative is expected to visit the café today, where they’ll likely raise a celebratory cuppa.
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