How Julia Gillard final speech as PM will be remembered – Dignity

The measure of the impact of a speech or presentation must be viewed within the context in which that the speech is given.

After being dumped as Prime Minister of Australia last Wednesday, Julia Gillard, who must have felt crushed from this final blow, who had sustained months of withering, vitriolic, brutal verbal assaults from all sections of the media – assaults that would have skewered most other politicians of any stripe – did not cower and whimper off the public stage.

Instead, Gillard took this huge loss on the chin, and in short-order time, prepared a resignation speech, fronted up at a media conference and delivered a passionate, composed, dignified, ‘statesman-like’ speech. (please see the below clip that contains excerpts from the speech)

The final performance of a person on the public stage is the one that will be remembered long after the time of the performance. Julia Gillard will be remembered for many things – positive and negative. For this speech, she will be remembered positively.