Mark Latham Targets Out Gay Sydney MP Alex Greenwich With Vile Homophobic Slur
Image: One Nation MP Mark Latham (left) and Independent Sydney MP Alex Greenwich.
One Nation MP Mark Latham on Wednesday targeted out gay Sydney MP Alex Greenwich with a disgusting homophobic slur on Twitter.
Trigger Warning: This story discusses hateful homophobic comments, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24-hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or webchat.
Social media users slammed Latham’s remarks against Greenwich as “blatant homophobia”. Facing an online backlash for his comments, Latham, who has a history of making anti-LGBTQI statements and pushing anti-trans bills, soon deleted his tweet, but not before Twitter users managed to take screenshots. Latham’s comments invited rebuke from One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, who termed them as “disgusting”.
Star Observer reached out to Greenwich, who said he did not wish to further engage with the matter.
“I understand this tweet has been taken down, I don’t intend to engage with the matter further. My focus in the Parliament will be working with the majority of members to support the LGBTQ community to progress important reforms,” said Greenwich.
Far-Right Christian Men Attack LGBTQI Activists Outside Latham Event
Earlier this week, Greenwich was re-elected as Independent Member for Sydney in the state elections for a historic fourth term.
Greenwich, a former convener of the Australian Marriage Equality campaign, had said that he would back a minority NSW government subject to them supporting his Equality Bill and proposed legislation to ban gay conversion therapy in the state.
Last week, Greenwich condemned the One Nation MP, following violence outside Belfield Church in southwest Sydney, where Latham was the keynote speaker at the ‘Community Forum on Religious Freedom and Parental Rights’ event.
One police officer and Community Action For Rainbow Rights activists were injured after the men, some wearing Christian Lives matter t-shirts, assaulted them and hit them with rocks and bottles. NSW police arrested three men over the alleged attacks.
Hateful And Dangerous Individual
Latham, who is likely to be re-elected to NSW Parliament’s Legislative Council, said the police advised him not to speak at the event, but he had chosen to go ahead and do so.
In a statement to the press, Greenwich said: ‘Mark Latham is a disgusting human being and people who are considering voting for One Nation need to realise they are voting for an extremely hateful and dangerous individual who risks causing a great deal of damage to our state.”
A Twitter user shared Greenwich’s statement and Latham responded with hateful rhetoric. “Disgusting? How does that compare with sticking your d*** up a bloke’s a*** and covering it with s***?” Latham spewed in his now-deleted Twitter post.
When other users called him out for his homophobia, Latham doubled down. “Greenwich and co. can do that until it falls off, as far as l’m concerned. But calling others disgusting? Nah,” Latham said. He later deleted the second post as well.
Pauline Hanson Condemns Latham’s Homophobic Comments
My response to comments made by Mark Latham on Twitter today. pic.twitter.com/phuoTYUtHQ
— Pauline Hanson 🇦🇺 (@PaulineHansonOz) March 30, 2023
Latham’s comments proved extreme even for One Nation Leader Pauline Hanson. In a video message posted on social media, Hanson termed the remarks as “disgusting” and called on Latham to apologise. Hanson said she had tried to call Latham on his phone, but “to no avail”.
“I don’t condone them (Latham’s comments), and neither do my members of Parliament or party associates. I think they are disgusting,” Hanson said. “I have clearly sent a text message to him (Latham), telling him my views and also I have asked him to give the people an apology.”
Labor leader and NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe told the Sydney Morning Herald that she was left “physically sickened” by Latham’s comments. “There is no place for homophobia in NSW. No person should be subjected to this type of abuse. Ever. Alex Greenwich deserves an apology,” Sharpe posted on social media.
Guys and Dolls: Yes, it was a horrible insensitive remark. But I learned decades ago, if you let words–and I don’t care how awful they are–rule your life, you won’t have much of a life. I’m a 70 year-old gay male living in the armpit of the word (a/k/a Frankfort, KY). Everyone here knows I’m gay. I don’t hide it and I don’t mind telling people should they ask. Hateful statements used to really bother me; they don’t anymore.
Mark Latham is toxic to our modern society and culture and attacking people like he has with Alex is so wrong.
Latham should be stood down from any position until he unreservedly apologises to Alex.
If it disgusts you Markey, don’t do it. And if you really need to discuss it with a political opponent, keep it between yourselves.
Most of the rest of us have learned to not care what others do in the privacy of their bedrooms, and all you have done now is remind us why you were unsuitable for high political office. We sure did dodge a bullet back then, and most of us now appreciate it.
Sadly….
Australia now has its very own Trump….
Not for the first time of late, in this old world
I’m kind of glad I’m of an age where I’m heading towards “GRADUATION.”
rather than Kindergarten….
Thanks for having the bravery to publish what he said so that we can make up our own minds as to its seriousness. Most of the media has us relying on the opinions of others which basically allows Latham to get away with it, since it could be spun as he just said something that upset the snowflakes. Make him stand up for what he says.
Yeah, but how does he know what Greenwich does in bed? Sounds like Mark is going a bit too heavy on the scat porn… Does he realize that what he is claiming that Greenwich does, is done by a lot of straight people? In oldet times it was a form of contraception.
Does Mark really think that anal sex is really only the purview of gay men? And how on earth does he know what Alex gets up to?
The worrying thing is this loony was once in line to be the next Labor Prime Minister of Australia. Thank God the public saw through him.
oh Mark is just terrible. how could he still be the One Nation Leader? just awful in 2023…
IS ANYONE REALLY SURPRISED ? This is the sort of Garbage people have heard for decades, whether it be playground or pub – (this ‘was’ standard Australian lingo, offline) – before twitter provided a fruitful platform for these Dinosaurs to spew their last and pathetic gasp for sunlight.
I am so fully disgusted by this.
Mark should have understood by now that our primary targets are blacks, muslims and now trans folk. We mostly skipped gays after conducting polling.
Mark, please check the talking points my office provided to you last week.
It’s not too long ago that this psycho was leader of the ALP. How was that ever allowed to happen?
The worrying thing is that there are people who vote for this!