'I feel betrayed by my country': Yassmin after the storm

By Melissa Fyfe
Updated August 20 2017 - 9:13am, first published 8:57am

A seven-word post on Facebook unleashed a world of trouble for Yassmin Abdel-Magied - who reckons the punishment did not fit the crime.

Yassmin Abdel-Magied: 'Before Anzac Day I was knocking back corporate gigs left, right and centre, but now the only ones that are coming in are from overseas,' she says. Photo: Kristoffer Paulsen
Yassmin Abdel-Magied: 'Before Anzac Day I was knocking back corporate gigs left, right and centre, but now the only ones that are coming in are from overseas,' she says. Photo: Kristoffer Paulsen

In the eye of the storm, Yassmin Abdel-Magied went to see a psychologist for the first time in her life. The former Queensland Young Australian of the Year, engineer and author was in trouble because of seven words she'd written on Anzac Day: LEST. WE. FORGET. (Manus, Nauru, Syria, Palestine…). She had quickly removed the Facebook post and apologised, but it was too late: a national fury was unleashed.

Subscribe now for unlimited access.

$0/

(min cost $0)

or signup to continue reading

See subscription options

Get the latest Wollongong news in your inbox

Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date.

We care about the protection of your data. Read our Privacy Policy.