Important to remember most Australians don't actually think life is a Surry Hills People and Culture Department, as much as people here repeat their talking points and worldview
Let's take it back a step.
This is a story being driven by conservative media in Australia most notably through The Australian. The person was outed there and via talk-back radio in Sydney (an overwhelmingly conservative space).
Your "Surry Hills People and Culture Department" is presumably a dig at what you perceive as left leaning people or "wokeness" or something making a big issue out of something you consider unimportant yet all the elements driving this story are right wing conservatives who are banging the outrage drum.