Jo Stanley: Stopping violence is a matter of life or death
THE responsibility rests with all of us to speak openly, to commit to stopping violence, and to teach young people it’s not OK. Because it’s literally a matter of life or death, writes Jo Stanley.
Opinion
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THIS year alone, at least 55 women have died in a violent attack.
This tragic and devastating statistic is more than a number in the newspaper.
These women are more than victims in another part of our country or another part of our town.
They are connected to each of us, because their deaths sit at the most extreme end of a terrible scale of violence towards women and children that, whether we’re aware of it or not, we come in contact with every day.
We are surrounded by violent behaviours that include physical, sexual and psychological abuse, emotionally controlling behaviours, and harassment.
Behind our neighbours’ doors, within relationships we know, in our own loved ones’ lives, in our own homes.
And so the responsibility rests with all of us, to speak up, to speak openly, to commit to stopping the violence, all kinds of violence. Because it’s literally a matter of life or death.
I am proud to have been announced this month as an ambassador for The Line, a national campaign run by Our Watch to help young people prevent violence against women.
This involves recognising and calling out behaviours that “cross the line”, such as being disrespectful towards others.
AFL players Patrick Dangerfield, Marcus Bontempelli and Shaun Burgoyne have also been announced as ambassadors for The Line.
We join the wonderful Luke Ablett, the campaign’s inaugural ambassador.
Stars such as these play such a powerful role in modelling respect, equality and inclusiveness.
In my life, I have been blessed with healthy, respectful loving relationships that have always been on the basis of true equality.
I have been blessed with a rich and fulfilling career that has given me the opportunity to speak openly and, in some instances, very loudly, about the need to address gender inequality in general, and more specifically, its impact on relationships and the safety of women and children.
I’ve been blessed with my daughter, Willow, who at six years old is without fear or shame about the person she is, and so inspires me to assist every single young person to have the same sense of self.
I’ve always seen my role as mother to provide Willow with the support, encouragement and clear and honest communication that will allow her to enter her adult years happy, strong and respectful of herself and others.
But for her to have the kinds of relationships I want her to have, I need her peers to understand themselves and their place in the world in the same context.
It is a privilege to be a part of The Line, because I know the campaign’s engagement with the
wonderful young people in our country is making a difference.
A difference towards the safe world I want my daughter to raise her family in.
We all need to be aware of the warning signs of violence in young people’s relationships and how to safely take action.
Also, about what constitutes respectful relationships, how to work through relationship issues in healthy ways, and encouraging young people to question disrespectful behaviour.
Most importantly, it is crucial that we achieve gender equality in Australia and around the world; it’s only through highlighting the harm of gender stereotypes that we can defeat them.
I am the daughter of a single mother, sister to two sisters and mother to a daughter.
I have always been surrounded by strong women who have taught me to know and like who I am, and to never accept a lesser version of myself, no matter who or what circumstance I face.
Our young people need to be taught the same.
They need to be taught that the derogatory way women are often portrayed in media, advertising, video games and pornography reinforces a negative stereotype about the value of women in society.
Join me in advocating for a culture of respect and equality.
Together we can make a safe environment for our young people. For our future.