Brittany Higgins sounds the alarm on TikTok rape culture
Sexual assault advocate Brittney Higgins’ stark warning on gender-based violence, criticising social media platforms for creating a generation of young men desensitised to disrespect and violence towards women
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Brittany Higgins has issued a stark warning about the rise of a “digitised rape culture” which is targeting young boys on social media.
Speaking at the Give Where You Live Foundation’s Conversations That Matter event in Geelong, Higgins highlighted the dangers of online content which promotes misogyny and violence.
“Spend just 30 minutes on TikTok as a teenage boy with a fresh account, and you are likely to be served misogynistic, violent, or anti-feminist content,” she said.
“This isn’t anecdotal – it’s algorithmic.”
The advocate for survivors of sexual assault delivered a powerful keynote address on gender-based violence at the GMHBA stadium event on Thursday.
She argued social media was creating a new generation of young men who were desensitised to sexual violence and disrespect towards women.
“Rape culture has digitised. It has professionalised. And it’s targeting the next generation of boys at a rate we are unprepared for,” she said.
Higgins’ rape allegations in Parliament House six years ago ignited a political firestorm.
The former political staffer also criticised the criminal justice system, describing it as “brutalising” for survivors of sexual assault.
Drawing on her own experience, she called for reforms that centre victim-survivors, uphold their rights, and ensure they are not further traumatised by the pursuit of justice.
“Like so many people, until I actually was forced to engage in the criminal justice system, I didn’t realise how brutalising it is to report a rape and how hard it is to navigate the legal system,” she said.
“I am not standing here today to tear down the legal system. I’m standing here to say: it
wasn’t built for us. And it hasn’t evolved fast enough to meet the needs of a society that now
demands better.”
More than one in four women – or over 2.3m Australians – have experienced violence by an intimate partner since the age of 15, according to figures by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
The event, attended by more than 300 people, also featured a panel discussion on gendered violence, with speakers sharing personal reflections on their experiences with the justice system and their advocacy for change.
Give Where You Live Foundation chief executive Zac Lewis said the foundation was proud to provide a platform for important conversations.
“Brittany’s mission is clear – to build a world where survivors are not silenced, where their stories are heard, and where systemic change is not only possible, but inevitable,” he said.
Higgins urged the audience to demand transparency, defend affirmative consent laws, and resist the cultural retreat from the #MeToo movement.
“We must remember that the standard you walk past is the standard you accept,” she said.
Originally published as Brittany Higgins sounds the alarm on TikTok rape culture
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