Family First to fight for Classification Board overhaul following anti-family decisions

Family First to fight for Classification Board overhaul following anti-family decisions

Family First shares the outrage of child safety and women’s rights advocates at recent decisions of Australia’s Classification Review Board reported in the Weekend Australian.

If elected, Family First will fight for an overhaul of the board including inclusion of child safety and trauma experts on the board to ensure decisions reflect community standards.

The board’s clearance of a novel and a comic containing graphic depictions of child sexual abuse and violent sexual acts against women under the guise of "literary, artistic and educational merits” is a stark example of how this government body is failing to protect families.

Family First calls for urgent reform of the Classification Review Board to prevent such anti-family decisions from continuing to harm our society.

The board’s decision to give the novel Ostend an unrestricted classification is a shocking dereliction of its duty to uphold community standards.

Ostend, written by Maxsense Maximus, includes graphic descriptions of the violent gang rape of a nine-year-old girl and the torture of an 11-year-old girl by paedophiles.

While the novel does not promote paedophilia - its descriptions are in the context of a character dismantling a fictional child sex gang – the novel’s depictions of child gang rape are of such a graphic nature that they do not belong in literature.

Family First has chosen not to print even the Australian newspaper’s description, which was itself heavily redacted.

Despite this horrifying content, the board deemed the material “not high in impact” and concluded it had “literary, artistic and educational merits.”

It is incomprehensible that such content could be deemed suitable for audiences as young as 15.

Equally appalling is the board’s approval of The Boys: Omnibus Volume Two, a comic depicting violent sexual acts, including a scene where a man threatens to kill a woman’s family while forcing her into submission.

The board dismissed this as "dark humour" and “consensual” despite the clear terror and aggression depicted. This decision trivialises the horror of sexual violence and ignores the dangerous influence such media can have on young minds.

Family First firmly believes there is no place for literature or media that normalises or glorifies child sexual abuse, rape, or violence against women and girls.

These decisions by the Classification Review Board undermine efforts to combat domestic violence, protect children, and uphold the dignity of women.

It is deeply concerning that, while the Albanese government touts its new laws banning under-16s from social media to reduce social harm, it allows material of this nature to circulate freely.

Family First commends family activist Bernard Gaynor for his tireless efforts in exposing the dangerous failings of the Classification Review Board.

Gaynor has highlighted how these decisions are not only morally wrong but legally flawed, given that the National Classification Code explicitly prohibits material containing descriptions of child sexual abuse or exploitative depictions of sexual violence.

Family First has long supported Gaynor’s work, with National Director Lyle Shelton featuring him on ADH TV.

Readers can view these insightful discussions on Family First’s YouTube channel.

Advocates such as Hetty Johnston of Bravehearts and Melinda Tankard Reist of Collective Shout have rightly also condemned the board for failing to prioritise community wellbeing and child safety.

Johnston described the material as "violent porn" and expressed disbelief that such content could be given the green light.

Tankard Reist called for the inclusion of child safety and trauma experts on the board to ensure decisions reflect community standards.

Family First, if elected at the federal election, will fight for these inclusions.

The inclusion of experts in child safety and trauma is essential, as is a mandate to reject material that trivialises or exploits sexual violence.

Without such reforms, the board will continue to betray its responsibility to the Australian people.

As a nation, we must draw a firm line against the distribution of material that degrades women and endangers children.

Family First will continue to advocate for a safer, family-friendly Australia where the rights of the vulnerable are defended, and harmful media is kept out of circulation.

(Image: A page from the comic strip "The Boys").