Plenty of people have weighed in on the scandal surrounding Sonia Kruger’s stance on Muslim immigration. Silvia Jeffreys, Waleed Aly, Pauline Hanson, and now Constance Hall.
In a passionate Facebook post last night, the popular writer told her 800,000 followers that while she loves The Voice host, her call to ban Muslims from entering Australia “broke” her heart.
“It broke my heart for the Muslims that I know, for the refugees desperate to escape the same enemy that we are accusing them of being,” she wrote.
As Hall, 32, explained, part of the reason she was so affected by Kruger’s comments on Today Extra earlier this week was not just because she strongly disagreed with them, but because of a meaningful personal encounter she had with star while working at a Melbourne bar several years ago.
Hall was serving partygoes at a Dancing With The Stars event, when the Strictly Ballroom actress beckoned her over and asked her to join her at the table.
“So I sat with Sonia for about 10 minutes, I cant remember what exactly we spoke about but I do remember how she made me feel, special. Like we knew each other, like we were friends, on the same level,” Hall wrote.
“That might not sound like a hell of a lot to you guys, but to a girl who served beer to drunk snobs for a living and lived permanently on a couch in the lounge room of a share flat. It meant a lot.”
via Twitter/Sonia Kruger
The encounter left Hall with rose-coloured view of Kruger, making her "hurtful", divisive comments all the more shocking.
"I looked at her and for the first time instead of seeing a strong, beautiful, humble legend... I saw a scared women, a women responding to fear. A kind women saying dangerous and sad things."
Yet Hall found the ensuing "witch hunt" against Kruger to be equally sad, as rather than using her comments as an opportunity for education and debate, people met them with yet more hatred.
"In fact, I have seen more hate about her on my news feed in the last few days then I have seen directed to the Terrorist behind the Nice attack," she wrote. "I don’t agree with a word that Sonia said, fear is dangerous, but hatred is no way to counteract fear."
For Kruger, she had one message:
"I just want to remind you that despite what social media and your colleagues or friends might be saying, to me you will always be the one person that saw me that night that I was covered in beer and ashtray juice. You saw me as a human and not a servant. I never forgot that," wrote Hall.
"But I see refugees as humans in need and not terrorists, I hope one day you will too."
Top Comments
Sonya just verbalised what many are thinking. Are we not allowed to have an opinion???? Let us see what people will be saying down the track in a few years time when our whole culture is null and void. Christmas has already got the axe, next it will be Easter and so it will all go. It will all be deemed as offensive.
Sonia you have my support 100%. I'm a migrant and I came from the UK in 1983 with my wife and children. Back then people used to say to me that australia was about 5 years behind England and I look at what's happening in the old country now and it doesn't sadden me at all. I believe the main reason for brexit is to close the UKs borders. Like us they're and island nation. And as for muslim society, well they are a sick joke! Not one muslim has stood up and denounced the actions of these murderers, because that's what they are, murderers.
Have you ever stopped to think of the scenario where it was the Christian faith that was constantly under attack, misunderstood and totally vilified? You don't think there is enough 'ideology' in the bible to inspire angry, marginalised Christians to terrorise?
No, it is not Islam that is behind the violence. It is angry young men's reaction to the racism and hate they experience (from people just like you). And before you call me a 'lefty jihadist apologist' or something equally ridiculous, I'll just state the obvious and say I am horrified by the attacks…and I am scared. Of course I am! But to me, it's only going to get worse with this type of 'us and them' mentality…not to mention that this is totally and utterly unfair on the vast majority of Muslims who (like me) just want to live peacefully and be judged on our thoughts and deeds rather than the religion we happened to be born into.
Christians are the most persecuted people on the planet.
Your argument is floored.
Errr….lol, really? Tell me more about that!
Muslims do denouce it, they just don't get the publicity coverage like Kruger et al.