A certain right wing blog WITH TIES TO National has tried to discredit Tania Billingsley because her friend has links to Rape Crisis and has had her photo taken with me.
This blog was an extreme example of rape culture and was so incredibly offensive that it’s hard to know where to start, or imagine ever ending once started, so I will do my best not to go to the specifics that just make me too angry.
I’m happy to let a lot of attacks go but this hateful and defamatory attack on two women – Tania and her friend – needs challenging.
Shame on them for trying to silence a powerful young woman because she has support. Shame on anyone that would ignore the fire in Tania that enabled her speak out in the hope that she might be able to help us as a society confront what is a major problem.
So many of our community organisations have been silenced by gagging clauses in their contracts, or just by the knowledge that some organisations have lost funding for doing too much advocacy.
Many beneficiaries have been silenced by the members of this government using all their power to misrepresent them and vilify them.
Many people who have experience sexual violence are silenced by the rape myths in our society.
Many in our media have been silenced by the pressure for readership and ratings and efficiency that has compromised their ability to research and run stories that might not be easy to understand.
The role of community organisations is not to just provide services, it is to educate and advocate. I know I used the things I learnt working for refuge to support friends in need. That’s a really important part of the unseen benefit of our community organisations.
Our society needs more people willing to speak truth to power and I have nothing but respect for Tania and her friends and support people.