“Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you… Fanta Pants.” – Marieke Hardy
It’s been a bit of a whirlwind 24 hours. I’ve got no work done at all because I’ve been glued to Twitter, news sites and the TV as the Australian political landscape shifted before my eyes.
Australia now has its first female prime minister, Julia Gillard. She was not directly elected to this role; rather, she’s now in the top job after a leadership spill that saw members of the ruling Labor party vote for her rather than Kevin Rudd. Our Westminster style of government can be brutal like this and part of me is a little sad that it all had to happen this way.
Nonetheless, as I watched Julia being sworn in as PM by our first ever female Governor-General, I felt a little shiver. I was watching a defining moment in our history. Finally, a woman holds the highest political office in the land. As someone said on Twitter: “At last, Australia has moved in to the 20th Century.”
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Australia was only the second country in the world to give women the vote in 1901 so we’re overdue for this. A timeline of other first female leaders shows that 43 other nations have installed women as prime ministers or presidents before us. The very first was Sri Lankan Sirimavo Bandaranaike in 1960; Margaret Thatcher was the 6th.
Julia Gillard has been in parliament since 1998 and was Deputy Prime Minister from 2007 til now. I’m not sure if she’s going to make any of the political changes I desperately want her to make, like dumping the internet filter policy or properly implementing policies to prevent further climate change. In theory she’s a leftie but the last couple of years have shown that she’s really a political pragmatist with a strong predilection for spin. Politically, she could well be a huge disappointment for me.
Still, I’m feeling far too happy that she’s got the job. Only 3 days ago Kevin Rudd was kowtowing to the Christian Right via a closed webcast to churches. Julia has gone on record as saying she’s “non-religious” which means we might see an end to the increasingly disturbing sway of Christians over our government.
Demographically, Julia is also very unusual… and my kind of girl. She’s unmarried (but in a happy de facto relationship) and made the decision not to have children. This is groundbreaking stuff if you consider she’s flouted the prevailing wisdom of “family values”. She’s been abused for being “barren” and therefore not understanding the lives and needs of Australian women and naturally I call bullshit on that. I do think however, that her decision not to have kids has helped her get to the top job. I think politics is such a nasty business that you have to give it all your attention; most men in power leave child-raising to their wives and do this without criticism. She should be offered the same respect. She made a decision that would mean she didn’t have to make compromises with her career or family and I absolutely admire her for that.
Of course, I can’t help but feel supportive of her because she’s a redhead like me. We’re a minority and easily picked on in this country. The twitter feed was awash with bluey, ginger and ranga jokes (“I for one welcome our new ranga overlords” was popular). And hell, even I like to use the term “Fanta Pants” because it’s one of the more amusing phrases. We redheads don’t get that many role models – the best I could do was Sarah Ferguson in the 80s – so it’s great to see one of us up there. Julia even mentioned it in her speech, that she might be the first redhead PM (not true, though, that was James Scullin in the 20s). One of the more amusing cartoon depictions labels her as the Powerfox, a name which seems rather apt.
The hair is one thing. It will be interesting to see if the media gives in and starts making comments on her clothes and general appearance. I hope she doesn’t let them get away with it. Whatever her politics, Julia Gillard is a very clever and powerful woman who does not deserve to be marginalised because of her gender.
Still, she’s already been called an ugly, witchy, shrill bitch. All the usual terms for a powerful woman. I’m sure she’s used to it by now.
So there it is. In spite of my happiness with Julia’s elevation, I still won’t be supporting Labor. I still think anyone who cares about free speech and human rights should vote for The Sex Party in the Senate and the Greens in the lower house.
Now, back to your regularly scheduled smut.
Pics from the SMH, News.com.au and Crikey.
“Politically, she could well be a huge disappointment for me.”
That will probably be the case, but then she is constrained by the system. If she doesn’t play the game, then she won’t last.
Still, it’s a step forward for Australia and as you mentioned Julia Gillard has some endearing qualities (like being non-religious, hardworking, female, and a redhead). Here’s hoping we can add “not totally beholden to the political machine to that list”.