As hinted at by the news that she was seeking legal advice, Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has confirmed that she has pressed the giant red button marked ‘defo’ to launch defamation proceedings against Liberal Democrats senator and gun pervert David Leyonhjelm.
Hanson-Young is alleging that Leyonhjelm defamed her in comments he made on 3AW and Sky News in the wake of telling her to ‘stop shagging men’ in parliament.
A GoFundMe was set up by author Jane Caro and USyd’s Simon Chapman to raise money to cover Hanson-Young’s legal costs in the proceedings. According to Caro and Chapman, if their case is successful and Leyonhjelm is ordered to cover Hanson-Young’s legal costs, the money raised by the GoFundMe will be split and donated to women’s charities Plan International and Working Women’s Centre SA.
According to the ABC, Hanson-Young sent out an email to supporters asking for donations of $20:
My resolve to make a stand was galvanised because I knew this wasn’t just about sexist comments and innuendo directed at me. No woman deserves to be disrespected, harassed, and bullied in the workplace, in the street, or in their own homes. For women everywhere, from the factory floor, to the hospitality industry, to flight attendants, this fight is for you.
Leyonhjelm, in his characteristic fashion, hasn’t shown an ounce of contrition or visibly entertained the possibility that he might have goofed it. Having sworn a solemn oath to being a complete dickhole at every available opportunity, Leyonhjelm responded to criticism by doing interviews and calling the PM a “pussy“.
His comments have received criticism from even the other blind, corpse-coloured bottom-dwellers that he cohabitates with at the bottom of the pundit barrel; both Tony Abbott and Mark Latham took breaks from championing the supremacy of white western culture to tell him to knock it off.
Leyonhjelm is no stranger to defamation, having himself in the past threatened to sue for defo at the drop of a hat – because I guess being a full-time libertarian is a sort of ‘if you feel like it’ kind of deal.
