Australian author Clementine Ford has apologised for a tweet that said 'coronavirus isn't killing men fast enough'.
The post was in response to another tweet from Ms Ford, which referred to a story about a woman who had to quit her job during the pandemic because her husband couldn't deal with full-time parenting, according to the Daily Mail.
The author of Boys Will Be Boys then posted the inflammatory phrase on Twitter.
The tweet has been labeled 'deliberately divisive and incredibly unhelpful' as well as 'offensive and distasteful' by Melbourne's Lord Mayor Sally Capp.
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The backlash on social media was vociferous, with many people calling for an apology.
Clementine has since issued a statement on social media, admitting that it was a 'poorly judged' message and something that was very flippant.
Ms Ford said: "I'm a big enough person to admit when I've misjudged something. I still stand 100% behind my fury at men exploiting women's unpaid labour (exacerbated by the global pandemic), but I've reconsidered my flippancy in discussing it.
"I've always maintained that the difference between jokes that punch up and down is the reality of harm.
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"E.g. joking about firing men into the sun has no basis in reality and therefore no potential to further harm, while 'jokes' about domestic abuse are very much reflective of an extensive harm already in place.
"The corona tweet was contextually in response to the fact women are once again shouldering the burden of domestic labour at the expense of their own economic freedom, being let down by men who are in turn upheld by systems that have privileged them.
"It is acceptable to express fury at that, and it's disappointing more men aren't outraged by this reality.
"But based on my own metric outlined up thread, I have to accept fault for the corona tweet because it made a flippant joke about something that IS actually a harmful reality, and one that affects marginalised men disproportionately, not to mention robs people of their loved ones."
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She added that she had not wanted to compound 'harm and grief for anyone', nor to be dismissive about the situation.
Ms Ford continued: "This acknowledgement isn't for the men who are looking for any reason to ignore patriarchal impact but for the people genuinely hurt by my words.
"I'm sincerely sorry, and I wish I had framed my argument in better terms and in a way that didn't compound harm. Be well."
The apology has divided people, with some claiming that it's a just conclusion to the issue while others say she should be punished.
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The Herald Sun reports Melbourne Council is now reviewing its selection process after giving a grant to Ms Ford to help write her new book.
Featured Image Credit: Clementine Ford/Instagram