Graduation address sparks mass walkout at major Australian university

A devout Catholic former trade union leader has sparked a mass walkout at a university graduation ceremony when he spoke out against abortion and gay marriage.

Joe de Bruyn, who led the Shop, Distributive & Allied Employees Association (SDA) from 1978 to 2014, gave the keynote speech at the graduation ceremony of the Australian Catholic University in Melbourne on Monday evening.

De Bruyn also used the speech to speak about his opposition to same-sex marriage and IVF, prompting hundreds of students and staff to leave the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.

He told the faculty of education and arts, law and commerce that he had opposed “the deliberate killing of unborn human beings” for decades.

‘Today, more than 80,000 unborn children are killed by abortion in Australia every year. Globally, the estimated number is 42 million annually,” he said.

“Abortion is the world’s leading cause of human death, greater than the human toll of World War II. It is a tragedy that must be ended.”

Many attendees said the comments were inappropriate for a graduation ceremony and said ACU should apologize.

But an ACU spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that “Mr De Bruyn’s comments during the ceremony were made in a personal capacity.”

‘His views and tone of delivery did not resonate with many in the audience.’

The SDA is an important force within the right wing of the Labor Party and has for years blocked every step towards legalizing same-sex marriage from the agenda.

On Monday evening, Mr De Bruyn made it clear that he is still strongly opposed to gay marriage.

“Marriage between a man and a woman was instituted by God at the origin of humanity in the Garden of Eden, as the Book of Genesis in the Bible tells us,” he told the students in remarks reported by The era.

“Since then, every society on earth has at all times recognized marriage as between a man and a woman.”

Mr De Bruyn also spoke about how researchers at Monash University developed ‘the technique of IVF for infertile women’ in the 1980s.

“In the controversy that followed, the media asked me for my opinion,” he said. “I responded that it was morally wrong to deliberately bring children into the world in an environment where the child would have no father.”

The ACU this week awarded Mr De Bruyn an honorary doctorate ‘in recognition of his commitment to workers’ rights, educational advancement and improving social welfare’.

But the university was reportedly concerned about what Mr De Bruyn would say in his speech, given his outspoken opposition to abortion, gay rights, IVF and same-sex marriage.

“The university understands that many of our staff, graduates and their families disagreed with the content of Mr De Bruyn’s speech, and we regret that this happened,” the ACU spokesperson said.

“We always encourage people to express their views and beliefs, while at the same time being respectful of those who hold opposing views.”

The graduation program said Mr De Bruyn had shown ‘outstanding support (for) the Catholic Church in Australia, especially in the promotion of liberal arts education’.

It also noted ‘his outstanding contributions to the general welfare of the Australian community through a lifetime of serving and representing the interests of Australian workers, thereby supporting the mission of ACU’.

As people filed out of the Exhibition Center in droves – including some who had been sitting next to him on stage – Mr De Bruyn encouraged students to maintain their Catholic faith in the years to come.

‘My experience is that many Catholics succumb to peer pressure. They think that their professional lives will be damaged if they promote the teachings of the Church.

‘My experience is that this is not the case.

‘Although my views on some issues conflict with the views of my contemporaries over the past fifty years, this has never affected my career.’

The university said it will “issue a statement to graduates and staff attending the ceremony, acknowledging that the content of Mr De Bruyn’s speech is not in keeping with the celebratory occasion of graduation.”

The ACU has offered counseling services to graduates and staff involved in last night’s ceremony.

“ACU is committed to providing a safe, inclusive and respectful environment for students and staff of all faiths,” the spokesperson said.

‘Education, faith, respect and acceptance are at the core of our mission as a Catholic university.’

Many online commentators were shocked by Mr De Bruyn’s speech, with one asking: ‘Did this really happen? What?’

Another wrote, “Wait a minute…why is someone talking about abortion at a graduation ceremony? Whether they are for or against abortion is not even important. Why abortion at all?’

A woman who was there said she was “one of the people graduating and he literally ruined the graduation ceremony.” I literally walked out.”

Another commenter pointed out that “there were probably a lot of LGBTQIA+ people in the audience. You can be gay and believe in God. This was wrong.’