Australian Men Hold Some Of The Most Sexist Views In The Western World
Three in 10 Australian men think women who say they were abused often make up or exaggerate their claims.
An international survey has revealed that Australian men hold some of the most sexist views in the Western world.
— Content Warning: This article discusses sexual assault. —
Research by Ipsos and the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership released this month spanned 30 countries including America, Singapore, Canada, Malaysia, and Turkey.
Three in 10 Australian men think women who say they were abused often make up or exaggerate their claims, forming the highest percentage of any Western nation in the survey.
One-fifth of Australians say gender inequality doesn’t really exist, with men being more than twice as likely to agree — the second highest-cohort behind Saudi Arabia. Additionally, just over a quarter of Australians still think feminism does more harm than good, with men being at least twice as likely to think and say this.
Respondents were also asked whether it’s a woman’s ‘obligation’ to have sex with their partner even when they don’t feel like it, and whether it’s okay to use misogynistic language online or not.
“Sexual violence against women has been a huge focus of our community debate thanks to the bravery of Brittany Higgins, Grace Tame, and so many other courageous women,” said former Prime Minister and Chair of the Global Institute, Julia Gillard. “Now comes this research with its shocking findings about underlying male attitudes, and how much worse they are in Australia compared with other countries.”
The findings follow a similar survey by the ABC least year, where nearly 70 percent of women identified as a feminist, compared to 34 percent of men. The Australia Talks results also identified that 37 percent of men agree that women and women are treated equally in Australian society, compared to 14 percent of women.
“Enough is enough,” said Gillard. “Our nation should be a leader on gender equality, not lagging so far behind. We need profound change.”
Photo Credit: Khosrow Rajab Kordi / EyeEm