A woman who was fired from Cricket Australia for her pro-abortion stance on personal social media accounts has broken her silence.
Angela Williamson, a Tasmanian mother of three, was campaigning for more accessible abortion clinics in the state after being forced to travel to mainland Australia to have the procedure.
‘I’m a confident, educated and able woman, yet I am sitting here feeling beyond vulnerable, feeling like less of a person. I’m feeling alone, and I’m feeling ashamed,’ she told The Project.
Angela Williamson, a Tasmanian mother of three, was campaigning for more accessible abortion clinics in the state after being forced to travel to mainland Australia to have the procedure
Despite abortion being legal in Tasmania, the state’s last private provider closed it’s doors to the public, and hospitals only provide the procedure if there is a medical justification
Despite abortion being legal in Tasmania, the state’s last private provider closed it’s doors to the public, and hospitals only provide the procedure if there is a medical justification.
Since news of her dismissal broke, Ms Williamson has used her platform to assure the public she has no plans to cease her fight for women’s rights in Tasmania, despite the predicament it has put her in.
The 39-year-old took to her personal Twitter account to vent frustrations regarding inaccessibility.
Due to her previous employment in the state premier’s office, she was able to use her voice to reach a greater amount of people.
Due to her previous employment in the state premier’s office, she was able to use her voice to reach a greater amount of people
‘I was able to talk to reps from Greens and Labor, as well as media. I just thought, I’ve got a voice, I’ve got the connections and I can really make a difference. A lot of people won’t want to stand up because it’s such a personal issue, but I thought I could change things,’ she said of the tweets.
Instead of the reaction she was hoping for, she was completely undermined.
A staffer in the office of her ex-employer went to the extent of creating a fake account in an attempt to get her fired from Cricket Australia.
A staffer in the office of her ex-employer went to the extent of creating a fake account in an attempt to get her fired from Cricket Australia
After a heated exchange with Cricket Australia, she text the premier and explained the situation.
A few months later, Ms Williamson took to twitter again.
This time, her issue was directed at the Tasmanian parliament, who had rejected a motion to allow public hospitals to deliver the abortion service without a medical necessity.
Two weeks later, she was fired from her position within Cricket Australia.
Her tweets were cited as a direct reason for her dismissal, following the line they’d supposedly breached the companies social media policy.
Her lawyer, Kamal Farouque of Maurice Blackburn, argues no social media policy is able to prevent somebody from expressing their political views on personal platforms.
‘Angela didn’t do anything wrong. She expressed her political opinion about a public debate on a tweet. It’s difficult to see how that’s doing something wrong. It’s a case we think of an employer going way too far,’ he said.
While Cricket Australia refused to comment, they issued a statement accepting Ms Williamson had been dismissed from their organisation.
‘Cricket Australia respects an individual’s right to their opinion. However, it expects that employees will refrain from making offensive comments that contravene the organisation’s policies,’ a cricket Australia spokesperson said.
While Cricket Australia refused to comment, they issued a statement accepting Ms Williamson had been dismissed from their organisation
‘Cricket Australia respects an individual’s right to their opinion,’ a cricket Australia spokesperson said