White Ribbon Day 2020
Speak up and Speak out
Did you know that 42% of men aged 18-34 do not consider physical violence such as punching, hitting or restraining to be domestic violence, while 44% said the same of non-consensual sexual activity. These alarming statistics were reported by White Ribbon Australia (Essential Research National Poll, 2020) in the lead up to today’s national White Ribbon Day.
White Ribbon Day is an annual event to raise awareness of family violence by bringing people together – in workplaces, schools and communities – and asking them to stand up, speak out and act to end violence against women.
This year CareSouth will be one of many workplaces across the nation encouraging staff to wear white to support White Ribbon Day. But more importantly staff will be encouraged to have conversations – to speak up and out – with their colleagues and team members about what or who is your safe place?
In 2018 CareSouth was honoured to become the first White Ribbon accredited workplace on the South Coast and staff have worked tirelessly to support families experiencing violence, with sobering statistics showing one in four children in Australia are exposed to domestic violence. [1]
“CareSouth as an organisation recognises our broader responsibility for creating social change within the communities we operate. We see the impact of domestic and family violence on children and young people in the work that we do. As a White Ribbon accredited workplace, we are committed to contributing to this important movement to prevent and respond to violence against women,” says Tracy Mayo, Executive Officer Practice/Principal Officer.
“Our commitment will ensure that our employees are equipped with the knowledge and skills to address the issue of violence against women, both within the workplace and broader community. That’s why on 20th November, CareSouth will be asking all staff to acknowledge the importance of White Ribbon Day in Australia by wearing white to work and having a conversation with their colleagues,” says Renee Knight, Executive Officer Business.
White Ribbon Day will give CareSouth staff the opportunity to reflect on the fact that:
- on average one woman a week in Australia is killed by an intimate partner [2]
- across their lifetime 5 million women have experienced sexual harassment with 1 in 3 women aged 18-24 experiencing sexual harassment [3]
- 1 in 3 young people don’t think controlling someone is a form of violence [4]
- 1 in 6 women experienced abuse before the age of 15 [5]
- domestic and family violence is the principal cause of homelessness for women and their children with 1 in 3 young people presenting to homelessness services the victims of domestic violence [6]
- 7 million women over 15 have experienced sexual violence and 2.2 million have experienced at least one violent incident by an intimate partner [7]
As part of CareSouth’s White Ribbon Day initiative to Speak up and Speak Out, CareSouth is also launching a podcast with a senior clinician sharing his experience and insights into working in the domestic violence space with offenders. Listen here!
We also encourage you to check out the White Ribbon Australia website to learn more about violence against women and how to prevent it: whiteribbon.org.au
[1] Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2017). Personal Safety Survey 2016. ABS cat. no. 4906.0. Canberra: ABS. Retrieved from: http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4906.0
[2] Bryant, W. & Bricknall, S. (2017). Homicide in Australia 2012-2014: National Homicide Monitoring Program report. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. Retrieved from https://aic.gov.au/publications/sr/sr002
[3] Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2017). Personal Safety, Australia, 2016 cat. no. 4906.0. Canberra: ABS. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/2xqbuUn
[4] Hall and Partners Open Mind. (2015). The Line campaign. Summary of Research Findings. Melbourne: Our Watch. Retrieved from: https://www.ourwatch.org.au/Media-Resources?c=TheLine
[5] Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2017). Personal Safety Survey 2016. ABS cat. no. 4906.0. Canberra: ABS. Retrieved from: http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4906.0
[6] Source: AIHW (2018). Specialist Homelessness Services Annual Report 2016-17. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/2RHwr6h
[7] Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2017). Personal Safety Survey 2016. ABS cat. no. 4906.0. Canberra: ABS. Retrieved from: http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4906.0
