A lot has been written in the past few days about Senator Lidia Thorpe and her courageous act of speaking truth to power when she confronted coloniser, King Charles, in the colonial halls of Parliament. Yet amidst the commentary, one voice remains absent: the voice of the criminalised community. As a formerly incarcerated woman, I want to tell you what Lidia means to me, because as a leader, she embodies loyalty, bravery, and an unshakable commitment to pursuing justice for our community. In Lidia, I see a leader who has never wavered in her support for our struggles—a fearless advocate who stands with us when few others will.

Politicians and prisoners have long been bedfellows—not in any way that leads to liberation for the prisoner, but rather in how politicians exploit our existence. They don’t tolerate us; in fact, they revel in locking us away, hidden from society, and throwing away the key. What they truly love is using us as political fodder to gain votes, crafting “tough on crime” narratives that stoke fear in their electorates. Through their legislative power, they incarcerate us, not for the sake of justice or safety, but to strengthen their grip on political control. We become pawns in their cynical game, a way to whip up hysteria about so called crime waves that supposedly justify their interventions. We only have to look at the current Queensland election and the LNP’s scare campaign demonising our youth and whipping up a phoney “youth crime” crisis.

In Lidia, we have found a passionate and unwavering advocate—someone who doesn’t just listen to us in a cursory or patronising way, but truly seeks to understand the deep and complex issues our community faces. Lidia has given us a voice in spaces where we are often silenced. She has invited us into parliament, hosting roundtables where she brings other........

© Pearls and Irritations