Greens Candidate And LGBTI Activist Jason Ball Has Been Targeted With Homophobic Graffiti
"I will continue to be out, loud and proud about who I am."
Greens candidate for Higgins Jason Ball, has had one of his campaign posters defaced with a homophobic slur in Melbourne. Before becoming involved in politics, Ball was a vocal LGBTI activist who pushed for greater acceptance of gay players in the AFL.
In a Facebook post today, Ball said that he was publicising the incident to send a message to young LGBTI people that he “won’t be passive or silent in the face of bigotry”.
“The last time I had this word written about me it was scrawled across a school toilet door. I was 15. Now, in 2016 the homophobes are thankfully in the minority. But acts like this show we have a long way to go. And these acts do not happen in a vacuum.”
In his post, Ball mentioned the recent mass shooting in Orlando and how these events have pushed media commentators and bigots to “use our grief as a battering ram to prosecute their own agenda against another minority” (which yes, they absolutely have). He did not discuss if there have been other incidents of derogatory graffiti on his campaign posters.
“I will continue to be out, loud and proud about who I am,” Ball said. “Because love is love. And ultimately love will win.”
—
RELATED: The Orlando Shootings Are A Threat To Queer Safe Spaces Everywhere.
