Former Australian of the Year Grace Tame has reportedly been removed from a consent education program at one of the country’s most prestigious selective schools after she led a controversial chant at a pro-Palestine rally in Sydney.
Ms Tame had featured in the Consent & Healthy Relationships classes for Years 9 and 10 students at Conservatorium High School, a specialist public school for gifted musicians located near the Royal Botanic Gardens and the Sydney Opera House.
Her involvement in the program is reportedly being removed, according to the Daily Mail, following backlash over comments she made during a February 9 rally at Sydney Town Hall protesting the four-day state visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog, according to the Daily Mail.
Mr Herzog had been invited by Governor-General Sam Mostyn following the Bondi Beach terror attack to meet victims’ families and attend memorial events.
Protests over his visit escalated after organisers defied a court order banning the march, risking arrest under special police powers introduced by the NSW Government following the terror attack on December 14.
Ms Tame led a chant from the steps of Town Hall, “From Gadigal to Gaza, globalise the Intifada,” which was echoed by thousands of demonstrators waving Palestinian flags.
Gadigal is the Aboriginal name for Sydney, while intifada refers to Palestinian uprisings against Israel. The chant “globalise the intifada” is seen as a call to violence.
NSW has been considering following Queensland in banning the chant as hate speech when used to cause menace, harassment or offence.
Petitions have since been launched calling for Ms Tame to be stripped of her 2021 Australian of the Year title, with one attracting more than 27,000 signatures.
Ms Tame responded on Instagram, writing: “This is not the first time I’ve been made a villain for speaking out,” and, “I refuse to be silent.”
She has previously described her activism as a “pursuit of justice” and labelled Mr Herzog an alleged genocidist and war criminal.
Ms Tame rose to national prominence campaigning for law reform for sexual assault survivors in Tasmania and has appeared publicly alongside Brittany Higgins.
Her work in consent education at the Conservatorium school included presentations alongside Saxon Mullins and Chanel Contos, both prominent advocates in sexual violence law reform.
The Nightly has contacted the school for comment.
