In the recent New Matilda article: Professor Barry Spurr Is The Smoking Gun Of Institutional Racism By Chris Graham, Professor Spur was quoted directly:

TO: Barry Spur
FROM: (CLOSE FRIEND)

Goodness, what different times.

Today, (A COLLEAGUE) told me of a problem at (A COMPANY). Some harlot (A WOMAN) went back to a room party when her key would not work and waiting, went to sleep on the bed. Another (PERSON AT THAT COMPANY) put his penis in her mouth, as you do, and she called the police.

I told (MY COLLEAGUE) she was a worthless slut who will now cause this poor chap, who certainly did not adhere to Debretts, years of imprisonment with big black chaps because she is a worthless slut who should not have been there. In Dubai, she would be locked up as well. The muzzies are not all wrong about this.”

Professor Spurr replied to the email the following day.

Reeling from that story. Ye Gods. I think she needs a lot put in her mouth, permanently, and then stitched up.

So given Professor Spurr was handpicked by education minister Christopher Pyne to rewrite the Australian curriculum for school children, let’s analyse his comments for a moment. For not only are the comments of Christopher Pyne’s academic colleague condoning his close friend’s sickening, even neo-Nazi racism and misogyny, but Professor Spurr does more than support and condone, he advises that those who committed a sexual assault should have taken it further against the victim. When he says “she needs a lot put in her mouth, permanently, and then stitched up”, we need to ask, is he suggesting she be gagged and bumped off, killed?

And by ‘a lot put in her mouth’ is he suggesting the oral rape mentioned should have been done on a gang level? Is he suggesting that she should have been bashed? As Australian’s we are all aware of the colloquial term ‘stitched up’. It is used to mean ‘framed for a crime’. So it looks like Professor Spurr is advising the victim of the sexual assault should have been either permanently silenced or so badly assaulted and shamed for her own assault as to be ‘stitched up’, framed for the crimes committed against her?

So what of Christopher Pyne? At the most basic level, does the Education Minister share his colleagues primary misogynist values? A quick look at the way he openly references Julia Gillard in his own office on a daily basis as a ‘lying tart’ gives some insight. To quote Erik Jensen’s article “How Christopher Pyne puts up with himself“:

“On (Pyne’s) a filing cabinet is a picture of Julia Gillard beside the phrase “Flying Start”. The first letter of each word has been crossed out”.

Calling someone is a liar is one thing. But a ‘lying tart’. Based on what personal experience does the education minister feel justifiably able to make such a public shaming display of a women who took one of the most historical stands against misogyny in goverment in Australian history?

A tart? Really? Let’s look at the definition:

tart
[1]
n
harlot, hooker, prostitute, slag, slut, whore

And a ‘lying tart’… what does it mean when someone puts those two words together? That they are a whore and that any claims to the contrary should be met with labelling them further as a liar? Sounds like Professor Barry Spurr and Christopher Pyne are not too far from being on the same page. Just Spurr made the mistake of taking his own comments further.

Sick enough. But we are also well aware already that the once self appointed Minister For Women, Tony Abbott, was not only singled out for his misogyny, and his use of the well known rape related ‘joke’ he was perceived as making against Julia Gillard

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott joked this morning that he couldn’t be sure that when Prime Minister Julia Gillard said “no”, she meant it. Then he added: “Now, are you suggesting to me that when it comes from Julia, no doesn’t mean no? “

but that this was against his own early history of having been taken to court for sexual assault in his university days.

In an article in the Herald Sun in 2004 referring back to the sexual assault charges Tony Abbott was taken to court for in his university days, it may be that in some eyes Tony Abbott may have his own history of silencing the victim of sexual assault.

So Tony Abbott appoints Christopher Pyne, who hand picks Professor Spurr. Quite a ‘boys club’.

Donna Williams, BA Hons, Dip Ed.
Author, artist, singer-songwriter, screenwriter.
Autism consultant and public speaker.
http://www.donnawilliams.net

I acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the Traditional Owners of this country throughout Australia, and their connection to land and community.