She was pilloried in the papers, attacked on social media, even urged to self-deport by members of Parliament, so it will surprise few that writer/engineer Yassmin Abdel-Magied has a complicated relationship with Australia.
But during an appearance on The Project on Wednesday, the 26-year-old Sudanese-born woman explained just how damaging the experience has been.
Asked by host Carrie Bickmore how she describes Australia to people overseas, she replied, “It is hard. It is like dating an abusive guy.
“You love a lot of things about them, but they hurt you deep. So what do you do? What do you tell people? Do you tell them about the great times you had, about how grateful you were for all of the good stuff? Or do you tell them about how they traumatised you in a way that you will never be the same for?”
Abdel-Magied moved to London in August following a period of intense scrutiny, criticism and even outright hatred over a message she tweeted on ANZAC Day that read, “Lest. We. Forget. (Manus, Nauru, Syria, Palestine…)”.
The uproar over this perceived display of disrespect rolled easily off the back of what she had copped for claiming Islam to be “the most feminist religion” during an appearance on ABC panel show Q&A in February.
“I was Young Queenslander of the Year and on all of these boards and councils, and I was the good Muslim girl, the darling, and next minute it is like everything exploded,” Abdel-Magied said on Tuesday.
“It showed me that, I am just some 26-year-old and I can have the full weight of mainstream media, social media, the Government and the public against me and I come out on top. What of it?”
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Hang on a second, nobody forced her to say the comments she did and as correct as they were it was entirely inappropriate timing to do so. And she knew that. And now to call the country “abusive”? She’s taking the Mickey out right? Abuse is not something to even joke about. Take some responsibility, act with maturity and admit what you did was insensitive.
I'm still not sure if the Project team were just letting her have her say because they support her or letting her dig her own grave by letting her mouth run. She certainly demonstrated in her response to Gretl's questions that she continues to see the entire experience as an unjustified attack and that she did nothing wrong at all. That's not to say that the level of response to her stupidity was justified.
The comparison of the criticism she received to an abusive relationship is going to offend and upset a lot of domestic violence victims. You've got someone that's been free to take up the opportunities this country offers, free to speak their mind and free to leave, versus people that are often trapped, abused and in fear of their own lives.