Independent senator Lidia Thorpe has accused Anthony Albanese of touching on racist tropes about Indigenous women after the prime minister urged her to “get some support” following a late-night outburst.Senator Thorpe was filmed launching an expletive-laden tirade towards a group of men outside a Melbourne strip club on Saturday night, labelling one a “white little ****” and taunting another for having a “small penis”.
Mr Albanese joined a number of politicians in criticising Senator Thorpe, who quit the Greens in February, describing the behaviour as “clearly unacceptable” and urging her to “get some support”.
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“I think there are obvious issues that need to be dealt with, in terms of her health issues,” he told 2SM radio on Wednesday.
“These are not the actions of anyone who should be participating in society in a normal way, let alone a senator.”
Senator Thorpe says she ‘stood up’ against racist harassment
But in a statement on Thursday afternoon, the independent insisted she had “stood up” for herself after being provoked by “racists brazenly harassing” her outside the venue.
The independent urged the media to “see through shallow attacks”, which she said fit in a history of Indigenous figures facing media pile-ons.
“Saying I need mental help is a continuation of the old racist and misogynistic narrative used to discredit and silence outspoken and strong women, particularly Blak women,” she said.
“I am disappointed by the opportunism of politicians in Canberra, including the PM, using this to drag me down.
“While the Prime Minister and others have used this to try and undermine my progress, I have been busy out in community talking to First Nations leaders about solutions to the problems our people face everyday.”
Media has contacted Mr Albanese’s office for comment.
Strip club incident latest to involve Senator Thorpe
Senator Thorpe received a lifetime ban Maxine’s strip club over the Saturday night altercation, some of which was caught on a mobile phone video.
She was filmed labelling one “white little ****”, claiming one had a “small penis”, and telling another “you’re marked”.
One man is heard calling the senator a “racist dog”, while another asks “how the f**k does someone get in parliament like you?”
It is the latest in a series of incidents involving the senator.
In February, she temporarily halted Sydney’s mardi gras parade by lying down on the street in protest over police brutality.
A month later, she was tackled to the ground by security while protesting against an anti-transgender rally in Canberra.
Senator Thorpe’s former Greens colleague Mehreen Faruqi criticised the night club outburst this week, while fellow independent Jacqui Lambie urged her to “take responsibility for her actions”.
“I would say this to Lidia: you just cannot keep doing this. A good start would be admitting you are part of the problem, and the responsibility [for] your own actions needs to be taken into your own hands,” she told Sky News on Monday.
