Grace Tame has opened up about the ‘indefensibly cruel’ treatment she’s faced since being named Australian of the Year.
Ms Tame was just 26 when she was thurst into the spotlight as she was awarded the national accolade for her advocacy work for sexual assault survivors last year – having been abused herself by her high school teacher.
Speaking at a Committee for Economic Development of Australia women’s leadership event on Tuesday night, she said she faced a ‘disproportionate amount’ of criticism since becoming a public figure, which had drastically affected her mental health.
Ms Tame told the Committee for Economic Development of Australia women’s leadership event on Tuesday that she faced a ‘disproportionate amount’ of criticism for her work in advocacy
Ms Tame said her work as an advocate for sexual assault survivors can be overwhelming and that she had been treated for suicidal thoughts after ‘stepping too deep into the shame spiral’
‘Some of the criticism that I receive, it’s part and parcel of being in a public space, but at times it is indefensibly cruel, and the toll on our mental health, not just my own, is … I can’t really describe it because unless you’ve been in that space, it’s hard to relate to,’ she said.
‘You’ve got all these different people telling you should do this and do that and putting unrealistic demands on your time and your energy and criticism is coming from even within the sector that you work in, which is disheartening to say the least.’
She said she was ‘very aware’ of the privilege she has to be to be heard, but conceded her ‘journey has not been easy’.
‘First Nations people, people who have disabilities, migrants and other further marginalised people face even greater barriers to justice and in fact in some cases, their paths to justice are impossible – let’s be real.’
Her comments come just days after she revealed how she was recently rushed to the emergency room after the pressure of her public profile contributed to a suicidal breakdown.
Grace Tame became the first Tasmanian to win Australian of the Year in 2021 and is an outspoken advocate for sexual assault victims
Ms Tame said if people working in the advocacy sector ‘spend a disproportionate amount of time tearing each other down, the people who will benefit are the perpetrators’
‘I was actually in the ER the other day because I actually lost control and I was really scared,’ Ms Tame told the event held as part of the All About Women festival on Sunday.
‘I called up the clinic and I said, ‘I can’t, I can’t, I’ve stepped too deep into the shame spiral and I’m thinking about killing myself.’ That’s real and that’s the toll it takes. That’s the price of shame,’ she said.
Ms Tame, who co-founded the #LetHerSpeak movement, has endured a steady stream of public scrutiny since accepting the award.
The latest controversy revolved around her frosty demeanor to the Prime Minister in January.
At a morning tea hosted by Scott Morrison and and his wife Jenny at The Lodge in Canberra, she seemed unable to hide her displeasure with the PM.
After giving Mr Morrison a scowl and a less-than-friendly handshake she then threw him an icy sideways glance as he was welcoming other guests.
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Several weeks later in a speech at the National Press Club, she alleged the reason for her sour mood was a senior member of a government-funded organisation had warned her to not make any ‘damning’ comments about the Prime Minister.
Ms Tame (pictured with fiancé Max Heerey) told the Protecting the Outspoken event at the Sydney Opera House on Sunday she had visited the ER after entering a ‘shame spiral’ that lead to suicidal thoughts
Ms Tame’s most recent scandal was her sour demeanour while meeting with Scott Morrison in January where made no effort to hide her disapproval while shaking his hand
But controversy and a challenging relationship with the Federal Government has been a feature Ms Tame’s tenure in the role – a stark contrast to previous recipients.
Just days ago at an event in Adelaide she claimed the government ‘are more concerned with maintaining power and control than running the country.’
On Sunday, Ms Tame credited her ‘wicked sense of humour’ as helping to allow her to be herself in such situations but that it also ‘gets her into trouble’.
Speaking alongside anti-domestic violence campaigner Rosie Batty, also a former Australian of the Year, Ms Tame said she was probably ‘rougher around the edges’ than Ms Batty – who previously said Ms Tame’s attitude toward the government had made her ‘uncomfortable’.
‘I didn’t ask for this… I was living in a housing commission area. I was an unemployed person when I was named Australian of the Year,’ Ms Tame said.
Ms Tame said she intends to continue her advocacy work despite the public scrutiny and wants to make the field of work more accessible to the everyday Aussie
But while the stress weighs on her, Ms Tame said she was still ‘grateful’ for the honour and admitted some of the criticism directed at her unorthodox approach to the role is ‘justified’.
Ms Tame, along with former Parliamentary staffer Brittany Higgins, has become a figurehead of Australia belated #MeToo movement
She said she would like to see the movement become more accessible by ditching some of its combative edge – even within the movement itself with some factions bogged down in bitterness and semantics.
‘If we’re focusing too much on the negative I don’t think we’re going to get very far and I do worry about that divide and conquer,’ she said.
‘There’s all this inaccessible language in this sector we have to ask ourselves about what really is inclusive’.
‘I didn’t go to university, I didn’t do gender studies.’
Ms Tame intends to continue her advocacy work despite the public pressure, founding the Grace Tame Foundation in December 2021.
If you or someone you know is affected by sexual assault or violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, Bravehearts on 1800 272 831 or Lifeline on 131 114.
Source: Daily Mail
