Toowoomba’s Reclaim the Night event will be held online
Support workers say we cannot make our streets safe without first addressing those who blame the victim and not the attacker. This program tackles that problem head on.
Police & Courts
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IN THE past year, more than 4900 Queensland women were victims of sexual assault.
About a third weathered the violence in their homes, at the hands of their partners, but a worrying percentage were attacked on the street.
To reduce this number, the Toowoomba arm of the Domestic Violence Action Centre will host a virtual event marking Reclaim the Night – a global movement aimed at making the streets safe.
DVAC service manager Kath Turley said safety would only be achieved if we changed how we talk about sexual violence – and who we blame for it.
“When something does happen there is often victim blaming,” she said.
“People will say that a woman should not have been wearing what she was or that she shouldn’t walk through the park at night.”
Ms Turley is concerned that attitude allows attackers to justify their actions.
“Everybody has the right to walk through the park or dress in a particular way,” she said.
The 2020 Reclaim the Night event will consist of an online forum complete with a presentation about consent, a poem from young people who have experienced sexual violence, along with music, dancing and discussions.
Ms Turley hoped families and friendship groups would host their own parties and log into the DVAC live stream.
Moving the event online also puts it in front of the people who do engage in victim blaming and Ms Turley said confronting them was key to shifting their attitudes.
“We want to change that narrative,” she said.
To join the Reclaim the Night event, visit the Domestic Violence Action Centre Facebook page at 6pm on Friday.
