One of Australia’s most respected journalists and former 7.30 and Four Corners host Kerry O’Brien has turned down his appointment as an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) because because of former tennis champ Margaret Court‘s relentless homophobia and transphobia.
O’Brien declined the offer in a letter to Governor-General’s secretary Paul Singer late on Monday night.
“I believe the decision to award Australia’s highest honour to Margaret Court may serve to erode the hard-fought gains made over decades in reducing the impact off discrimination against members of the LGBTQ+ community – discrimination that has caused immense pain to untold people and destroyed lives,” he wrote.
#BREAKING: Veteran journalist Kerry O’Brien declines his appointment as an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) over “deeply insensitive” decision to promote Margaret Court from AO to Companion of the Order of Australia (AC) pic.twitter.com/kEk0dm3Tkr
— Gavin Coote (@GavinCoote) January 25, 2021
O’Brien is the second high-profile Aussie to snub the awards in recent days amid the growing unease about Court being promoted from an Officer of the Order of Australia to a Companion of the Order Of Australia – literally the highest honour in the country.
On Sunday, Canberra GP Dr Clara Tuck Meng Soo handed back her Medal of the Order of Australia for the same reason as O’Brien.
Dr Soo is not only a trans woman herself, but has been a lifelong advocate for all members of the queer community
“To me Dr Soo epitomises the true spirit of the Order of Australia,” O’Brien added.
“Her actions speak volumes as to why the Court award is so wrong.”
It’s a bold statement showing discrimination and bigotry has no place in Aussie society, and it seems right now that the dominos are indeed beginning to fall.
Watch this space.
