Sall Grover, founder and CEO of the women-only social app Giggle, has launched a scathing critique of former Prime Minister Julia Gillard as she prepares to chair the judging panel for the 2026 Women's Prize for Fiction in the UK. Grover argues that Gillard's government, through amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act in 2013, enshrined 'gender identity' as a protected characteristic, effectively undermining the biological definition of 'woman' and paving the way for legal battles such as Giggle v Tickle.
The Irony of Gillard's Role
Next week, Australia's first female prime minister will preside over a top women's literary prize. Grover finds this deeply ironic, given that Gillard's legislative changes have had far-reaching consequences for women's rights. The 2013 amendments, she claims, replaced the material reality of sex with a 'legal fiction' that allows men to identify as women, while punishing women who reject this notion.
Consequences of the Amendments
Grover highlights several fallout from the changes: women-only spaces, prisons, scholarships, and services are now vulnerable to any male who claims a female identity. Her own Federal Court case, Giggle v Tickle, ruled that a women-only app was unlawful for excluding a transgender woman. Lesbian groups are also fighting in court to exclude transgender women from public events. Schoolgirls avoid bathrooms with boys who claim to be girls, female athletes lose podiums and safety, and female prisoners share cells with men who identify as women.
Gillard's Media Tour
In the lead-up to the June 10 event in London, Gillard has given interviews, including one in The Times headlined 'I didn't suffer sexism or misogyny until I was prime minister,' where she reflects on her tenure. Grover criticizes this, stating that Gillard implies ordinary women are spared sexism, while she erased the legal category of 'woman' and now lectures others on misogyny.
A Call for Accountability
Grover suggests that the Sex Discrimination Act should be submitted for the Women's Prize for Fiction, calling it the most imaginative work of the decade—a law that demands society suspend reality and punishes women who refuse to applaud. She concludes that Gillard's legacy is a cautionary tale: she broke the glass ceiling only to replace it with a trapdoor labeled 'woman'. Australian women are living the consequences, and they are not impressed by the plot.
