It’s International Women’s Day, and did you really think Aussie politicians would go an entire 24 hours without fucking up somehow? It seems politicians have a difficult time thinking about anyone but themselves, and when they do, they need to put on a show for some good ol’ performative compassion. Let’s dive in.
Our story here begins with Dave Sharma, the Federal Member of Parliament for Wentworth. What did he do for International Women’s Day? Well, he had the bright idea to hand out pink flowers at a train station (and get a posed photograph while doing it).
You really cannot make this stuff up, but these days you barely have to. Let it all sink in for a moment. Pink flowers. On a day that bears so much heavy significance for women. While the liberal party is actively denying multiple rape allegations and struggles with ongoing issues of gender equality.
Such a hollow gesture from any man is completely insulting, and utterly thoughtless, but when it comes from a man within the Liberal party, who is doing nothing for the women he represents or works alongside, things become outright insulting.
https://twitter.com/DaveSharma/status/1368684303727562756?s=20
Shortly after the performative image was posted, comedian and writer Alex Lee revealed that the woman in the pic is in fact, her friend. Although it may look like she is happily receiving photos from Dave Sharma in the pic, it seems the truth leans on the opposite side of the spectrum.
Unsurprisingly, the woman taking the flowers from Sharma thought the whole thing was “weird and wrong.”
“I felt like saying this doesn’t make me want to vote from you mate,” she wrote in a text to Lee.
So the international woman in this photo is my friend. This is her response: https://t.co/5ri85LyoaQ pic.twitter.com/lDvrAYUJfm
— Alex Lee (@alex_c_lee) March 8, 2021
Naturally, Twitter was not having any of it, and suitably roasted Sharma to the moon and back.
It was simply delicious to read through the responses, but unfortunately, I could only put a few in here, so enjoy.
— Chaser Interns (@ChaserInterns) March 7, 2021
Hi Dave, a genuine question: have women not sufficiently demonstrated that this isn’t what we want today?
— anna s-r (@annaspargoryan) March 7, 2021
Another politician using women to further their own interests…
— S B (@SaltBanks) March 8, 2021
I’ve been trying to visualise my response if that had happened to me. Women are (generally) trained to be polite and accepting – I wonder if I would have broken out of that? I hope I would have challenged him. I’d really like to think so…
— Anne Gripton (@gripgirl) March 8, 2021
Ah, my favourite flower, the Hollow Gesture.
— Emily Gale (@EmilyGale) March 7, 2021
🤮🤮🤮
— Daniel Bleakley (@DanielBleakley) March 7, 2021
This is the twee Hallmark card version of an event designed to empower women. Who in Hades decided that giving a bunch of flowers to the little ladies is even faintly related to feminism? It is trivialising and demeaning.
And people wonder why the L/NP has a “women problem”.
— Margaret Morgan ✒???????? (@Monocotyledon) March 8, 2021
Look, I just…I can’t quite…
I don’t even know where to start on this, but @davesharma you need to have a rethink on whether in the current conversation, whether PR opportunities with pink flowers that make it look like you’re romancing that woman, are really appropriate. https://t.co/Rx73OpauIZ
— Lisa Wilkinson (@Lisa_Wilkinson) March 8, 2021
Realistically, the problem here lies in the fact that now is definitely not the time for performative actions, but real ones that actually step toward equality.
After an absolutely traumatic and gut-wrenching couple of weeks, in which Brittany Higgins and other women have made rape allegations towards a Liberal staffer, and Christian Porter has denied rape allegations towards him while playing the victim, it is absolutely inappropriate for Dave Sharma to be handing out flowers.
If you need me, I’m going to be mad about this for some time.
