Liberal candidate Katherine Deves has been forced to apologise again after comparing trans activists to Nazis and claiming half of transgender men are sex offenders.
Ms Deves, who co-founded an organisation to exclude trans people from women’s sport, was heard on a podcast comparing pro-trans activists to Nazi trains transporting Jews to concentration camps.
A new since-deleted tweet has also emerged, in which Ms Deves claims “half of all males with trans identities are sex offenders”.
It follows more recent remarks by the election hopeful regarding trans people, for which she had already issued one apology after facing heavy criticism.
On the podcast, recorded in February last year, Ms Deves said she felt her “Save Women’s Sport” campaign was comparable to the French resistance to Nazi occupation.
The podcast was hosted by Irish comedian Graham Linehan, who has also clashed with trans activists in the past over posts deemed by them to be hateful.
“I’ve got three small children. I have skin in the game on their behalf and people just weren’t willing to speak up and I just felt compelled to do so,” Ms Deves said on the program.
“I’ve always loved 20th century history. I think many people say, ‘I’d never be one of the villagers that stayed quiet when the trains went past.’ I would have been part of the French resistance.
“But when all of this was happening and no one was speaking out, I thought this is it.
“This is the moment in my life where I am going to have to stand up and say something against the status quo and against the establishment, and say I don’t think this is right and it might come at a cost to me, but I have to say it.”
During WWII, trains would transport Jews to concentration camps as part of Adolf Hitler’s evil ‘Final Solution’ – his plan to carry out genocide on Jews and other minorities.
Ms Deves issued a new apology on Thursday evening, telling the Sydney Morning Herald: “In my dedication to fighting for the rights of women and girls, my language has on occasion been unacceptable.
“It has hurt people, and detracted from my arguments. I apologise for such language and the hurt that I have caused. I commit to continuing the fight for the safety of girls and women in a respectful way.”
Ms Deves has felt the cost particularly hard this week, with her campaign for the seat of Warringah against Zali Steggall coming into question.
She had already been forced to apologise once for comments uncovered by news.com.au, in which she described trans kids as “surgically mutilated and sterilised”.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison initially defended Ms Deves, saying she was standing up for something “really important”.
“Katherine is an outstanding individual. And she’s standing up for things that she believes in, and I share her views on those topics. This is just about common sense and what’s right. And I think Katherine’s right on the money there,” Mr Morrison said.
More recently, Mr Morrison softened on the issue, saying his government would not support a bill in the works by Ms Deves and Liberal Senator Claire Chandler to stop sports clubs being sued for excluding trans athletes from women’s sport.
