News reports have confirmed that Hannah Clarke has died in hospital after being set alight by a man whose name I will not mention here, nor whose achievements deserve special recognition.
Inside her vehicle, Hannah Clarke’s three children Aaliyah, aged six, Laianah, four, and Trey, three, all died. Like you, I feel deeply shaken by this man’s actions. And I understand that we want to understand “why”.
However, the media reporting to date fuels the narrative that we know is so damaging. It focuses on the man who fell from grace, as though this act was in isolation.
Time and time again, history has taught us that entitled men kill the women in their life and her children to exert power, control and dominance.
And yet, we hear so little about Hannah and her children. Instead, the narrative implores us to empathise with a “troubled” man or to demonise the killer as some kind of “monster”. This is an exercise in othering.
Overnight, I’ve been contacted by friends of Hannah and they describe her in the most beautiful of ways: A woman with grit, resilience, determination and a wonderful mother and caring partner.
And in spite of all of her life’s achievements, the Australian media has, almost collectively, wanted for us to feel for the person responsible for the deaths of a woman and her children. No thank you. Not today, not ever.
Hannah, I am sorry we failed you. I hope that if there is a life after this world, you’re reunited with Aaliyah, Laianah and Trey where he can’t hurt you anymore ❤️
Thank you for your words, Tarang Chawla. 🖤
