Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, 4 November 2022

In November 2022, the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership (GIWL) hosted a conversation between Professor Mary Beard and Julia Gillard (Chair of GIWL) to explore the legacy of the “misogyny speech” and look at what comes next in the fight for equality.

On 9 October 2012, Australia’s first female Prime Minister Julia Gillard stood in Parliament House and delivered one of the most impassioned and iconic speeches in the history of the nation’s politics.

The Prime Minister’s words were a call to arms from the highest office in the nation – that misogyny and sexism should no longer be tolerated, because women are entitled to a better standard in private, public and professional life.

Ten years on, her speech continues to inspire and challenge people to call out sexism and misogyny in every field.