I was appalled to read of Drew Hutton’s expulsion from The Greens— the Queensland Branch of which he founded in 1990.
I have known and respected Drew Hutton since we were colleagues at the then Kelvin Grove Teachers College in the 1970s.
In my role as President of the Academic Staff Association I became well acquainted with his commitment to democratic processes and a fair go for all.
It is apparent that his adherence to those ideals has brought about his expulsion.
I am utterly confused by the comments of Queensland Greens Convenor Gemmia Burden.
“No one should be subjected to violence or hate speech on the basis of their gender, nor (sic) their race, sexual identity, ethnicity, or religion.”
Wasn’t that what Mr Hutton was saying in his ‘controversial‘ social media post?
Unless I’m missing something or there has been some sloppy reporting, Mr Hutton has been expelled not for a breach of the Greens’ Code of Ethics but their implied ‘Code of Silence’ on the rights of transgender people and the shameful prevalence of violence against women in contemporary Australia.
The Greens are not the Party they once were, and Hutton’s expulsion is the clearest demonstration of that sad fact.
– Merv Welch,
The Palms
