Tassie Woman Who Says She Was Fired For Her Pro-Choice Tweets Breaks Down On “The Project”

The woman who claims she was fired from Cricket Australia for her tweets about abortion has shared her story on The Project — at times breaking down during the interview with Carrie Bickmore.

39-year-old Angela Williamson was sacked after she tweeted that recent changes to Tasmania’s abortion policy was “irresponsible, gutless & reckless”. Further tweets attacked the government for their inaction on abortion policy and climate change.

Williamson had to fly interstate to terminate her pregnancy.

A woman advocating for an essential health service via Twitter is nothing to be ashamed of, Angela Williamson. You have thousands of advocates standing with you. Stay strong #TheProjectTV

— Michelle Thompson (@MichelleT_MSA) July 30, 2018

“I did not want to have to fly to Melbourne, I wanted the support of my family,” Williamson said, visibly upset.

Tasmania’s last abortion clinic shut down at the end of 2017, meaning that any woman wishing to have an abortion would have to get to mainland Australia. Last month, a Tasmanian parliament debated a motion that would have enabled public hospitals in the state to provide abortions — it was narrowly defeated.

Williamson, who had previously worked for the Tasmanian premier, felt as though she was in a unique position to affect change.

“I was able to talk to representative from the Greens, from Labor, from media and I just thought ‘I’ve got a voice, I’ve got connections, and I could really make a difference,'” she said.

But Williamson claims things got nasty: she says that someone within the government shared details of her abortion with her employer.

In a letter obtained by Fairfax, Cricket Australia told Williamson that they “must maintain a positive and productive relationship with the Tasmanian Government”.

“Your role requires you to represent Cricket Tasmania and Cricket Australia in the best possible manner to government and government agencies,” the letter continued. “The tweets you have sent are fundamentally inconsistent with this requirement.”

Williamson denied she would do much different if she had her time again. Looking close to tears, she said:

“Maybe I wouldn’t have sworn. But the intent… I don’t regret.”

Williamson was a manager of public policy and government relations at Cricket Australia.