Wendy Francis

Wendy Francis
Born Wendy Francis
Occupation Lobbyist

Wendy Francis is an Australian political activist. She is a lobbyist on social issues and is the Queensland state director of the Australian Christian Lobby (ACL).

Biography

Wendy Francis was the Executive Producer of the Brisbane Lord Mayor's Christmas Carols for several years. She is married to Peter Francis, who is a Baptist pastor and Vice-Principal, lecturer and Director of Field Education at Malyon College.[1]

Francis' political interests before joining ACL in January 2011 included her running as the lead Senate candidate in Queensland for the Family First Party in the 2010 Federal election.[2] She created controversy when she compared allowing same-sex marriage to the stolen generations and to "legalising child abuse".[3]

Chad St James, the Brisbane editor of SameSame, said of Wendy Francis:

"Over a couple of hours sitting in a cafe, the two of us chatted and for the very first time I saw very human side to a woman who has been one of our most stringent opponents to marriage equality. I also gained a better understanding of her motivations, and I won’t deny that it was one of the most surprising coffee dates I have had a long time".[4]

Francis shared a personal story on Brisbane radio on the impact of her sister's death.[5]

Lobbying

During April 2013, Francis lobbied against government subsidies for the abortion drug RU486 saying, "Women facing unsupported pregnancies should be offered real support - not a chemical which is harmful to both them and their unborn child."[6]

Francis has argued for outdoor advertising to be ‘G-rated’[1] Francis received abuse[7][8] after it was revealed she organised ACL members to protest against bus shelter billboards - where as Francis said, "children are waiting for the school bus" - promoting safe sex, which featured a fully clothed, hugging, gay couple holding an unopened condom packet. Francis was criticised due to her campaign not mentioning any affiliation with the ACL, and for describing the image as an act of foreplay.[9] A Queensland Parliament committee conducted a public hearing where Francis argued that all billboards should be ‘G-rated’. The committee subsequently recommended a tougher approach to sexually explicit outdoor advertising.[10]

In May 2013 after a billboard was erected in Kings Cross, New South Wales, Francis lobbied to have it removed. The billboard displayed a fictionalised UK prime minister having sex with a pig. Francis said children should not have to see an adult image like this. The billboard was subsequently taken down.[11]

In August 2013 a ruling was made against the owners of a billboard by the Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB).[12] The ASB said it presented women, "in a manner that was subservient and degrading". The owners said they would comply with the ruling. With the billboard remaining in place in August 2015, Francis said that self-regulation is not working.[13]

Francis received abuse over her support of changes in surrogacy laws to exclude same sex couples and single people.[14]

In July 2015, Francis lodged a petition with the Queensland parliament complaining about the Safe Schools program.[15] The petition incorporated wording from a Safe Schools student resource, OMG I’m Queer, intended for children aged 11 and up. However the Clerk of the Parliament would not permit the wording on Queensland parliament’s website because of the "intemperate" language.[16] The 10,891-signature, petition was subsequently tabled with the "intemperate" wording censored.[17]

In lobbying against 'gender selection', Francis has said that eliminating human life in its early stages for being the wrong sex, is sex discrimination.[18]

References

  1. 1 2 Moore, Tony (3 June 2011). "Who is Wendy Francis?". The Brisbane Times. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  2. ↑ "Our Staff". ACL. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
  3. ↑ Grubb, Ben (9 August 2010). "Family First candidate Wendy Francis stands by gay slur on Twitter". The Age. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  4. ↑ St James, Chad (27 August 2012). "Coffee with Wendy Francis". SameSame. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  5. ↑ Levingston, Rebecca (25 March 2013). "The View From Brisbane - Wendy Francis". ABC. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  6. ↑ Bennet, Adam (26 April 2013). "RU486 drug 'won't lead to more abortions'". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  7. ↑ "ACL QLD director receives abusive language and cyberbullying for campaigning against sexualized billboard". Christian Today. 3 June 2011. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  8. ↑ Shelton, Lyle (6 June 2011). "Abusive labels and slurs no substitute for real debate". The Drum, ABC. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  9. ↑ "Adshel reinstates safe sex ad after removal sparked online backlash". Herald Sun. 1 June 2011. Retrieved 1 June 2011.
  10. ↑ Robyn Ironside (1 February 2014). "New laws may crack down on sexually explicit billboards". The Courier Mail. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  11. ↑ "'Christian lobby urges fines for bestiality billboard". ABC. 2 May 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  12. ↑ "Ad watchdog bans strip club poster because it may show nipple". Mumbrella. 3 September 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  13. ↑ Healy, Samantha (13 August 2015). "Watchdog powerless to remove raunchy billboard". Townsville Bulletin. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  14. ↑ Bridie, Jabour (24 June 2012). "Christian lobbyist weathers barrage of abuse". The Brisbane Times. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  15. ↑ Partridge, Emma (4 November 2015). "Australian Christian Lobby slams Safe Schools anti-bullying program". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  16. ↑ Shanahan, Angela (27 February 2016). "Parents are the best judge of their kids' sex education needs". The Australian. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  17. ↑ "Cease Safe Schools roll out in Queensland schools". 13 October 2015. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  18. ↑ Ambrose, Margaret (25 November 2016). "Gender selection: Family balancing or vanity parenting?". Herald Sun. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
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