Talking about male violence means nothing without action

If our nation’s leaders are serious about ending violence against women they need to stop calling for men to change their attitudes and start seeing this national crisis for what it really is, writes Simon Copland.

The recent murder of Courtney Herron has gripped public attention and re-energised calls for action on male violence.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has led the charge, saying that Herron’s death shows the need for men to change their attitudes towards women.

While that’s certainly true and we cannot ignore the gendered nature of this crime (or the ongoing crisis of male violence against women), it’s getting harder not to be cynical about the solutions being provided.

Calls for men to change their attitudes are not enough to stop these tragedies from happening. In this case in particular it’s impossible to ignore how homelessness, drug addiction, and mental health issues came together and ultimately culminated in a violent and deadly consequence.

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Research shows that violence against women crosses socio-economic boundaries. But it also shows that some groups — including women in financial hardship — are at far greater risk.

Courtney Herron was found dead in Melbourne on Saturday morning. Picture: VicPol

That’s not to say that all women don’t face risks, but women are much less likely to face violence if they are economically independent, and if they do, they have a better chance of escaping it.

These opportunities are rarely afforded to women living on the streets, as was the situation Courtney Herron, 25, found herself in.

What we don’t often talk about is the fact that the same is often true of perpetrators.

Violence against women is often connected with family and social histories of violence in the lives of men who go on to commit violent crimes.

These histories are then more likely to repeat themselves when men get stuck in cycles of poverty.

Of course, not all of these men become perpetrators and not all perpetrators are poor.

But we cannot ignore the role that this cycle of poverty and violence plays in these acts of violence. The evidence is just too strong.

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Mental health and drug problems also play a role. Again, not all men with mental health issues become perpetrators of violence, but there is a clear connection between violence and untreated mental health, alcohol, and drug issues.

Research even shows that reports of family violence are higher in areas where more alcohol is sold.

Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews has said men need to change their attitudes towards women, but they also need to be supported in times of mental health and housing crises. Picture: AAP/David Crosling

It is in these areas that our federal and state governments are failing.

Daniel Andrews might talk big on the need for men to change their attitudes, but his Government spends half the national average on public and social housing.

He has refused to increase funding for homeless services, but committed a staggering $1.8 billion to prison funding.

All this despite the fact that study after study shows that housing, among other homelessness services, is the most important thing we can do for women facing violence to ensure that they can leave an abusive situation and have somewhere to go.

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With a shortfall of over 100,000 homes, it’s no wonder that tens of thousands of Victorians are languishing on a waiting list — most are women and children.

Sadly, women who become homeless after fleeing violence are more likely to face violence again.

We saw this in the saga surrounding the recently renovated Gatwick Hotel in St Kilda, where homeless people were kicked out to make way for redevelopment for Channel 9’s hit TV show, The Block.

We now know that many of those who were evicted have ended up in prison, part of a spiral that can take people from homelessness to imprisonment.

Courtney Herron was failed by the state and federal government’s inaction on the growing homelessness crisis. Picture: supplied

Prison is one of the worst places that a vulnerable person can end up, creating cycles of poverty and violence that have been shown do nothing to reduce violent crimes.

When politicians use crimes like those committed against Courtney Herron to target the behaviour of individual men, what they are really doing is distancing themselves from the tragedy.

Of course, the onus is on all men to respect women.

But the onus must also be on governments to provide a real safety net, to make sure women in need aren’t turned away from shelter, and to stop people from becoming homeless in the first place.

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Perhaps Courtney Herron would still be alive today if she’d had a home to go to, a decent income to fall back on and a services system that adequately supported her.

Perhaps things would be different if her alleged murderer had access to proper mental health care. Instead, they both fell through the cracks.

Courtney Herron’s alleged killer is fully responsible for his actions and should be held to account, but he is also the product of a system that has been failing men and women for years.

This case shows us that we need to do more than tell men to change their attitudes.

We need to change the system that allowed this to happen. It’s time we stop with the talk and start actually taking action.

@SimonCopland