The Reckoning: Quarterly Essay 84

This year, Australia’s #MeToo moment erupted in the national parliament. In this electrifying essay, Jess Hill, the acclaimed author of See What You Made Me Do, traces the meaning of those events and what could happen next.

What are the politics of rage? What couldn’t Scott Morrison see? And what hope is there of real progress and accountability? Hill examines how the law, the media and politics can bring about – or stall – change. She shows how when #MeToo meets patriarchy, the results are unpredictable – from lasting reform to backlash. And she asks whether a conservative prime minister can do what is required to meet the moment.