On Tuesday 19 May 2026, Federal Labor Minister Dr Anne Aly appeared on ABC Afternoon Briefing and made concerning comments about women’s rights. Minister Aly claimed that efforts to protect women’s single-sex spaces come only from the “far Right”, and described women advocating for female-only spaces — such as Sall Grover — as “punching down”.
In response to these remarks, one concerned citizen has written to Minister Aly to express why sex-based rights for women matter and to challenge the Minister’s misrepresentation of this important issue.
Email sent to Dr Anne Aly, Federal Minister for Small Business and Multiculturalism
Dear Minister,
Your recent opinions on single-sex spaces (ABC Afternoon Briefing, Tuesday 19 May 2026), were indicative of ideological capture and virtue signalling. They are divisive, inappropriate and unacceptable from a member of Australia’s political class.
Accusing anyone who is an advocate of women’s (and children’s) rights, who understands and fights for single-sex spaces in order to keep women and girls safe, to accuse them of being right-wing is offensive in the extreme and shows nothing but contempt for women, (including the many in your electorate). These are the people currently doing the job that our elected representatives should be.
Your electorate comprises 180,177 people, 50.5% of whom are female (ABS Census 2021). Are you so very confident that the 90,989 women and girls you represent are on the same page as you, or have you just accused a majority of being right wing? You are an elected representative, Minister. Your job is to represent the views of the people who put you there, including the people who didn’t vote for you. Your job is not to virtue signal for a small but vocal minority who have, incredulously, captured governments and government associations, at all levels.
The ABS Personal Safety survey, conducted in 2017, revealed the following:
- Three in ten women (30.5% or 2.85 million) have experienced physical violence
- Approximately one in five women (18% or 1.7 million) has experienced sexual violence (the occurrence, attempt or threat of sexual assault)
- One in six women (17% or 1.6 million) has experienced an episode of stalking (any unwanted contact or attention on more than one occasion, or multiple types of unwanted contact or behaviour experienced on one occasion, that could have caused fear or distress)
- One in two women (53% or 5 million) has experienced sexual harassment (experienced or has been subjected to one or more selected behaviours which they found improper or unwanted, which made them feel uncomfortable, and/or were offensive due to their sexual nature).
Minister, are you confident that any man that presents himself as a woman, will never put a woman or girl at risk? Are you sure that you can tell which trans-identifying male will not threaten a woman’s safety? Logic dictates that the only way to keep women safe is to keep any man – trans or otherwise – out of women’s spaces. Or are you okay with one or two rapes being seen as within a margin error?
Men cannot be women. That is a biological fact. A man can feel like a woman, but based on what? Generally, it’s based on feelings and represented by stereotype and cliche. We do not determine laws, legislation or policy on feelings, we use evidence-based research.
You, Minister, are punching down, on your own sex class.
For the record, I am not right wing; I have, until the last election, always voted Labor. I can’t vote for the Greens, as they are similarly ideologically captured. I can’t vote Liberal, even though they, mostly, support women’s rights. Nor can I vote for One Nation. Labor has left a lot of people without a party. You’d be wise to abandon the ideology, and listen to the people, or those brave enough to speak out about this issue.
Regards,
A. Johnsen