Grace Tame reveals the truth behind smiling photo with Brittany Higgins

Grace Tame has revealed the sombre truth behind a beaming photo of her and Brittany Higgins together – explaining that their smiles were a front for ‘anxiety, distress, exhaustion and tears’. 

Ms Tame shared the image to her Instagram account in an emotional tribute to Ms Higgins on Wednesday, as the former political staffer celebrated her 28th birthday in a Queensland mental health clinic.

Ms Tame published a black and white image of both women and said their smiles were a facade that was masking the real emotions they were bearing at the time. 

‘The first image is nothing like the reality of that day. It was anxiety, distress, exhaustion, invasion of personal space, and a quarter of an hour spent in the bathroom decompressing afterwards at dinner. It was tears,’ she wrote.

Grace Tame (left) has revealed the sad truth behind a smiling photo of her and Brittany Higgins (right) from earlier this year

Ms Higgins has been recuperating in the hospital following the decision by prosecutors last week to abandon a second trial against her former colleague Bruce Lehrmann, who she alleged raped her in 2019.

Mr Lehrmann, 27, has always denied the allegations and is now considering legal action against various media outlets.

ACT Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold decided not to proceed with a second trial amid fears it would impact Ms Higgins’ mental health – after the first one was aborted in October due to misconduct by a juror. 

Ms Tame lauded Ms Higgins in her post, labelling her ‘a national hero’ and claiming that she has suffered an ‘insidious nationwide character assassination campaign’.

‘Happy birthday, dear Brittany. Warrior. Human. My friend…’ Ms Tame, also 28, wrote.

‘Brittany Higgins has taken every step of her excruciating journey under a microscope; with a nation breathing down her neck. This is no mean feat.

Grace Tame paid an emotional tribute to Ms Higgins with a lengthy post on Instagram

Ms Tame finished her post by declaring that she stands with with Ms Higgins who is a ‘national hero’

‘I am not a judge or jury, but I am a person who has also walked repeatedly in the line of fire – often alone – and it is not for the faint-hearted.

‘However, it is not for this reason that I stand with Brittany. It is simply because she is a decent human being. I stand with Brittany because I have compassion for her.

‘Brittany Higgins is a national hero.’ 

The 2021 Australian of the Year went on to decry the treatment or her friend in some sections of the media and online.

‘High-speed devices are simultaneously diminishing our collective attention spans, desensitising us to delicate content, and distorting our boundaries…’ the sexual abuse survivor wrote.

‘The aftermath of shock in online spaces often feels like a virtual stampede that leaves its subjects alone in the dust. I have seen this happen to Britt repeatedly. 

‘Anyone who argues that words can’t cause serious damage has never been the target of an insidious nationwide character assassination campaign like Brittany has.’ 

Ms Tame, who was named Australian of the Year in January 2021, is a survivor of child sex abuse 

Ms Tame said that over a period of 18 months with both women at the centre of a national conversation, she has come to know Ms Higgins ‘as a close friend’ and had the ‘honour of seeing a side of her I rarely see in digital or print media’.

‘I have been awed and floored by intelligence, kindness, vulnerability and determination to keep fighting for herself and others in the face of prolonged layered injustice and heightened relentless criticism,’ Ms Tame wrote.

‘She has provided support, comfort and reinforcement for myself and others amid some of the darkest, loneliest times. She is indeed a light.’

The post comes as Ms Higgins stated her intent to testify against Mr Lehrmann if he sues media outlets for defamation.

Bruce Lehrmann  (pictured) is considering whether to sue Lisa Wilkinson, the production company behind The Project, Network Ten and parent company Paramount

Former Liberal Party staffer Brittany Higgins is pictured with her mother Kelly Higgins outside ACT Supreme Court in Canberra on October 27, 2022

Daily Mail Australia revealed on Tuesday Mr Lehrmann is considering whether to sue Wilkinson, the production company behind The Project (Rove McManus’s Roving Enterprises), Network Ten and parent company Paramount.

Ms Higgins first alleged she was raped by a ‘male colleague’ during a TV interview on The Project with Ms Wilkinson in February 2021, which later won the current affairs program a Logie.

Sources with knowledge of the situation said Mr Lehrmann will claim he wasn’t given opportunity to respond to the allegations levelled in the program.

On Wednesday night, Ms Higgins vowed to testify to her version of events if civil   proceedings are to go ahead. 

It comes as her lawyers prepare to launch civil court proceedings against the Commonwealth and her former bosses Linda Reynolds and Michaelia Cash.

Her lawyers have sent documents to all parties setting out an intention to sue for sexual harassment, sex discrimination, disability discrimination, negligence, and victimisation.

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