The Liberal Party’s transphobic termite and Warringah candidate Katherine Deves was seen running out of a campaign rally on Sunday as a journalist asked her if she was transphobic. Sometimes, no comment is a comment.
In case you missed it, Deves made a series of now-deleted yet still fkd comments online about trans and non-binary young people as well as comments aimed at couples who adopt via surrogacy. She also worked with Tasmanian Senator Claire Chandler on her dangerous “SaVe WoMeN’s SpOrT” bill which if passed would allow sporting clubs to exclude trans people—specifically transwomen—from single-sex sport.
They’ve tried to justify the bill as improving women’s safety. But the idea that transwomen can be excluded from women’s sport is inherently transphobic. It stems from the arguement that transwomen aren’t real women because they weren’t assigned female at birth. But spoiler alert: transwomen are real women.
Anyway, Deves was at a campaign rally hosted by Prime Minister Scott Morrison in Western Sydney on Sunday with two bodyguards. It was her first public appearance in the Federal Election campaign.
NCA Newswire’s federal political reporter Courtney Gould asked the Warringah candidate when the rally finished if she could ask a few questions. Deves then grabbed her things and fled the scene. She made her way outside the rally room and towards the lifts as several members of the media followed after her and as Gould asked her questions about her blatant transphobia.
“Ms. Deves, are you transphobic,” Gould asked.
“Are you ashamed of your comments and do you stand by them?”
The whole moment felt like a depressingly too real scene out of VEEP. But it also showed Deves refused to hold herself accountable and thought she can avoid being accountable and still win the seat.
Gould then reminded Deves when she went in the lift that she’ll have to answer questions if she ends up winning the Warringah seat.
Controversial Warringah Katherine Deves makes a hasty exit from today’s Liberal campaign rally, her first appearance on the trail, after gallery journalists tried to ask her questions. #Auspol @SBSNews pic.twitter.com/ubpyT869Dr
— Naveen Razik (@naveenjrazik) May 1, 2022
Reporters tried to return to the rally room but a man wearing a Liberal Party shirt appeared to try to close the door on them. Security let them back in as they noted their stuff was still inside and that it was a “democracy”.
Morrison visited Batyr, a preventative mental health organisation in Parramatta, before the rally.
Gould asked him there about the double standard of making it his mission to support youth mental health when he’s supported Deves’ comments which are harmful to trans people and actually increase the rate of suicide ideation among LGBTQIA+ youth.
In fitting Scott Morrison fashion, the PM responded by downplaying it all. He claimed the “SaVe WoMeN’s SpOrT” bill was a separate issue.
Gould then called him out on his bullshit.
“How is that a separate issue? Can you please explain that?” Gould replied.
Making a youth mental health support announcement, the Prime Minister is asked if his support of embattled Warringah candidate Katherine Deves, who has made apologised for harmful comments against the LGBTQ+ community, is contradictory. #AusVotes @SBSnews pic.twitter.com/RKRnnc5cm7
— Naveen Razik (@naveenjrazik) May 1, 2022
“Fairness in sport, women and girls in sport is an important issue where I think there are common-sense solutions. And that’s what we’ve focused on with that,” Morrison said.
“In terms of what Katherine Deves has said in the past, she has withdrawn those [comments]. She said they were insensitive and that was my view as well.
“So there’s no suggestion that I have supported those earlier comments. I don’t support those earlier comments.”
Okay but you’ll support the exclusion of women that weren’t assigned female at birth from competing in their fave sporting teams and with their team surely because of their sex? That doesn’t add up.
