“Bravery has definitely got two elements where there’s that really conscious choice to do something and to take a leap of faith. And then there’s the element of, okay, that happened, what do I do next?”
Too many women have been subjected to the horror of abuse. Emma Husar is no stranger to those horrors, but what she didn’t expect was to find the same themes of abuse inside her own political party. Listen as she shares her story and why she’s so passionate about helping others find their courage and change lives.
Emma grew up in an abusive home with parents who were abusing drugs and alcohol. At 15 years old she found herself out on her own with no clue where to go. Instead of wallowing in her circumstances, she did what she needed to do to get into university and to begin life on the right foot.
Unfortunately, she found herself tangled up in an abusive relationship with her ex and didn’t realize it until it was too late. Once she finally started to extricate herself, the abuse she experienced began to ramp up.
During this time she was faithfully representing her community as a leader in her local politics. She loved being able to change the lives of so many people by helping to change policies and create a better world.
Then she found herself as an up and comer in the Labour Party as the federal member for the seat of Lindsay in Western Sydney and everything changed. A former staff member who’d been previously fired began making allegations that she’d sexually harrassed and bullied him.
That’s when she saw the true colors of the Labour Party and when her dreams of being in politics took a sharp turn.
Listen as Emma delves deep into her experiences and what she’s doing to help the women behind her avoid making the same mistakes. She’s also starting her own business, Brave by Design and is a keynote speaker. She’s making bold, brave moves and working to create true human progress.
ABOUT THE GUEST
Emma Husar
Emma Husar is most famously known for her role as a former member of the Australian House Of Representatives for the Division of Lindsay, for the Australian Labor Party (ALP) which she represented from 2016 to 2019. At the peak of her political career she was considered the rising star of the ALP.
In 2018 everything changed when Emma faced unfounded allegations by a former staff member of sexual harassment and bullying. These untested allegations were leaked to the media forcing Emma to launch a high profile defamation case against BuzzFeed which was settled outside of court in her favour. During this period she was forced by the ALP to resign. This was an undeniable painful situation, but for Emma it was an opportunity to turn that pain into grit and purpose.
Today Emma is an advocate for gender equality and an ambassador raising awareness of domestic violence. She is on a mission to empower others, especially women to courageously use their voice to be impassioned advocates for human progress. She believes that the creation of a better future lies in our ability to as individuals and as a collective to be Brave by Design.
