STATEMENTS BY SENATORS

Senator WHISH-WILSON (Tasmania) (13:46): The response to my speech last week around foreign interference and links to One Nation was both fascinating and instructive. Indeed, it was a case in point for exactly what I was talking about. Immediately following my speech, a number of pro-One Nation sock-puppet accounts swung straight into action—and it was interesting what they targeted.

They targeted my masculinity—not my politics necessarily or any of the factual data or matters around what I was saying. Firstly, they said I needed hormone replacement therapy. Secondly, they said I was weak, I was old, I was impotent, I was too emotional and I cry too much.

It might sound funny, but it's deadly serious because this is exactly from the MAGA playbook. It's exactly from the far-right playbook. They get men, especially young men, in on this hypermasculinity, this toxic masculinity—and if they get them on that, because they're at a vulnerable time in their life, then they get them on climate change, immigration and all these other issues.

I want to say to the men out there that might be watching this speech or that are interested in this subject that it's okay to show emotion. It's okay to cry sometimes. It's okay to be in touch with your sensitive side.

It's okay to want to go home and cook for your wife and offer her a foot massage. Real men treat women with respect. Real men treat women as equal.

I think it's about time we had this conversation as to why we see so much domestic violence and why we see so many atrocities around the world. To men out there: we've got to do a lot better. We need more role models in parliament and other places to get this message through to men—and we'll deal with the other elements of that speech shortly.