tag:theconversation.com,2011:/uk/topics/domestic-violence-1115/articlesDomestic violence – The Conversation2024-03-20T00:50:29Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2258952024-03-20T00:50:29Z2024-03-20T00:50:29ZSquatting, kidnapping and collaboration: Australia’s first women’s shelters were acts of radical grassroots feminism<p>50 years ago, there wasn’t a single women’s shelter in Australia. </p>
<p>Then feminists squatted two terraces in Sydney, opening “Elsie”, Australia’s first domestic and family violence refuge. </p>
<p>Commissioned by Elsie co-founder Anne Summers, I’ve recorded oral histories with the women who built and sustained Australia’s refuge movement.</p>
<p>Australia’s refuge movement is a story of courageous grassroots feminist activism.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-whitlam-government-gave-us-no-fault-divorce-womens-refuges-and-childcare-australia-needs-another-feminist-revolution-202238">The Whitlam government gave us no-fault divorce, women's refuges and childcare. Australia needs another feminist revolution</a>
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<h2>Choose to act</h2>
<p>In the 1970s in Australia, there was nowhere for women experiencing male violence at home to go. </p>
<p>One night almost exactly 50 years ago, around 40 women’s liberation activists changed that, claiming squatters’ rights over two derelict Glebe terraces. They broke a window, changed the locks and turned on the gas and water, opening “Elsie”, Australia’s first women’s refuge.</p>
<p>As Elsie worker Ludo McFerran explained, Elsie’s mission was a “space for women, run by women”, which the residents would control. Elsie did not offer “charity”, the founders aimed at “change”, and therefore refuges would one day become obsolete.</p>
<p>Cooma, Kamilaroi woman Mary Ronyane, who today manages Wilcannia Safe House, proposed that Elsie was created because, when together women draw from their strength, they can “make a choice”. They chose to act.</p>
<p>McFerran described the refuge work as “highly vulnerable”. At the beginning, the work was entirely voluntary, and refuge work never proved a lucrative career.</p>
<p>The activists sacrificed all their time, energy, health and often their safety. In the “wild west”, as McFerran described it, perpetrators would “regularly turn up, threaten to burn the house down and kill everyone inside.” </p>
<p>There was no legal protection for residents or workers, so when perpetrators failed to return children after visits, workers would “go and try find them” and where possible “grab the kids back and make a run for it.”</p>
<p>Desperately trying to cover the operating costs, some of the workers started dealing marijuana to pay for necessities. Sydney’s artists and intellectuals started seeking out “Elsie Pot”. </p>
<p>With an intention to secure funding, the activists started encouraging various government ministers to come and see the conditions Elsie’s residents were enduring. Founder Christina Gibbeson told me how she kidnapped Doug Everingham, the minister for health at the time. She forced her way into a car carrying Everingham and instructed his driver to take them to Elsie. She mused:</p>
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<p>“I would’ve gone to jail for it today, I suppose.”</p>
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<h2>Ceding power and privilege</h2>
<p>Australia’s early refuges operated collectively. Everyone was obliged to scrub bathrooms and care for resident children. Decisions took time and often went to a vote. Former resident and worker, Bundjalung woman Christine Robinson, believes “at Elsie, we all had a say and a voice.” </p>
<p>The founders recognised residents’ insights and skills that came with their life experience. In 1980, six years after Marrickville refuge opened, the refuge’s residents informed staff that it was time for them to leave and let them take the reins, and they did.</p>
<p>The activists wanted liberation for all women, not just those who looked like them. Women’s Halfway House worker Di Otto noted that they viewed the refuge “as a site in which they could make contact with women outside of [their] circles […] and work towards a collective and inclusive liberation.”</p>
<p>Vivien Johnson shared:</p>
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<p>[…] [us] middle class white women were consistently confronted by our class prejudices [and] with the racism we held towards the women with whom we claimed to be equal with.</p>
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<p>Christine Robinson believes Australia’s refuge movement “valued diversity.”
She explained that Elsie’s staff all learned how to sit with, and learn from, fellow feminists calling out their racism.</p>
<p>Robinson explained at Elsie, she and fellow Aboriginal leaders had a platform to culturally educate their non-First Nations colleagues, whom she described as a “captive audience”, “trying” to get it right. </p>
<h2>Space for activism</h2>
<p>Elsie’s founders sought to cultivate an environment in which residents could build confidence and reclaim control over their lives. In 1975, Bobbie Townsend, a working-class woman, arrived at Elsie with two children.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582446/original/file-20240318-22-m91mul.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A small, brown terrace house with two pillars and a screen door" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582446/original/file-20240318-22-m91mul.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/582446/original/file-20240318-22-m91mul.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582446/original/file-20240318-22-m91mul.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582446/original/file-20240318-22-m91mul.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582446/original/file-20240318-22-m91mul.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582446/original/file-20240318-22-m91mul.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/582446/original/file-20240318-22-m91mul.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The original Elsie Refuge, before it relocated, as taken in 2018.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:(1)Elsie-2.jpg">Sardaka/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
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<p>Townsend believes the late night discussions at Elsie’s dinner table “saved her”, and shared:</p>
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<p>[…] for 26 years nobody had asked me what I thought about anything […] The first time someone asked me in a collective meeting what I thought, I didn’t know what to say […] Elsie was about taking control.</p>
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<p>Robinson, like Townsend, also a resident turned staff member, reflected that “Elsie gave women power to make decisions for themselves.”</p>
<h2>Today, there is nothing quite like Elsie</h2>
<p>The founders all described an atmosphere of hope. Under Whitlam, things were possible. </p>
<p>McFerran explained that today, tendering practices have forced out community-run refuges. Run by Christian, centralised institutions, few refuges observe the grassroots collectivist principles that animated the movement’s early years. </p>
<p>While Elsie still opens its doors to victim-survivors today, it is run by St Vincent de Paul.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225895/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emma McNicol does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>50 years ago, the first shelter for women experiencing domestic violence was established in Sydney. It’s opening was far from a ribbon-cutting affair, but it’s legacy is long and powerful.Emma McNicol, Research Fellow at Monash Sustainable Development Institute, Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2246322024-03-08T05:51:37Z2024-03-08T05:51:37ZInsurance is the latest weapon financial abusers use against their partners. Here’s how we fix it<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/579740/original/file-20240305-22-zho482.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=20%2C10%2C6689%2C4456&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
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<p>They knew we had separated. Why did they let him cancel the policy and refund him the money without giving me a call to let me know the house and contents were no longer insured, or not do it before speaking to me first?</p>
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<p>These are the words of Maddy (not her real name). Her experience of domestic and family violence was compounded by the acts of the insurance company she thought would give her financial protection.</p>
<p>Maddy’s former partner cancelled their home and contents insurance with a simple phone call. He received a refund of the premiums she had paid just a few months earlier. She didn’t know – not until well after he threatened to burn down the house with Maddy and the children in it. </p>
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<p>If he had followed through with his threat I would have been punished too and made to pay the mortgage for a house that we couldn’t live in and not be able to rebuild because insurance wouldn’t cover it.</p>
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<p>Maddy is one of the women who described how insurance is being misused as a weapon of financial abuse, for my second <a href="https://cwes.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/CWES_DTD-GI_Issue2_FINAL_Singles.pdf">Designed to Disrupt report</a>. Their personal accounts highlight the need for systemic change.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/banks-put-family-violence-perpetrators-on-notice-stop-using-accounts-to-commit-abuse-or-risk-being-debanked-208575">Banks put family violence perpetrators on notice. Stop using accounts to commit abuse or risk being 'debanked'</a>
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<h2>Insurance as a weapon</h2>
<p>General insurance is designed to provide financial protection from unexpected events. It’s supposed to be an affordable way to repair or replace an asset that is lost, stolen, damaged or destroyed. </p>
<p>But too often, victim-survivors of domestic and family violence find they don’t have the coverage they thought. They may be left without a car, or a home, and with no or limited means to pay to restore their financial safety and economic security.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580043/original/file-20240306-20-aplow4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man pointing out terms in some paperwork to a woman" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580043/original/file-20240306-20-aplow4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580043/original/file-20240306-20-aplow4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580043/original/file-20240306-20-aplow4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580043/original/file-20240306-20-aplow4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580043/original/file-20240306-20-aplow4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580043/original/file-20240306-20-aplow4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580043/original/file-20240306-20-aplow4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Domestic violence victim-survivors can find they have less insurance coverage than they thought, or none at all.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/real-estate-agent-closes-deal-client-2256175877">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>There is limited data about the extent of the problem. But through desktop research and consultation with those with who’ve experienced it, and with consumer advocates and industry, we found the biggest issue is with joint policies. </p>
<p>Financial abusers exploit general insurance policies and procedures to deny access to information, cancel policies, interfere with the claims process, and to steal, limit or withhold payouts to the victim-survivor. </p>
<p>They aim to exert control by leaving their partner with no money, damaged or irreparable property and assets, and the accompanying emotional toll. </p>
<h2>Differing policies and procedures</h2>
<p>While some insurers have specialist teams to deal with these sorts of cases, there is a lack of standardised practices across the industry. </p>
<p>Results of our survey reveal wild variations in data between companies, with the number of domestic violence and financial abuse cases reported ranging from 11 to more than 2,000 in the 2021–22 financial year.</p>
<p>This means some victim-survivors will receive support that is empathetic and understands the affects of trauma, with flexibility for individual solutions. Others continue to struggle with dismissive or judgemental staff, risks to their safety, or compounding financial hardship. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/higher-unemployment-and-less-income-how-domestic-violence-costs-women-financially-204688">Higher unemployment and less income: how domestic violence costs women financially</a>
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<p>We asked whether any insurance company used modelling to estimate the risk or extent of property damage related to domestic and family violence. None did. </p>
<p>Yet it has been estimated that “consumption costs” (such as replacing damaged property, defaulting on bad debts, and the cost of moving) of partner violence against women and their children in 2021–22 could be $3.5 billion, including $202 million in damaged and destroyed property. <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/05_2012/vawc_economic_report.pdf">Most</a> of these costs are borne by victim-survivors and family and friends.</p>
<h2>What needs to happen?</h2>
<p>To address these issues with joint policies, three changes are needed:</p>
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<li><p>close the loopholes that enable perpetrators to cancel insurance policies without the knowledge or consent of victim-survivors</p></li>
<li><p>introduce a “conduct of others” clause as a standard part of every insurance contract, enabling victim-survivors to make a claim when perpetrators deliberately damage property</p></li>
<li><p>modernise the law so insurance products can be redesigned with features that protect against financial abuse. </p></li>
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<span class="caption">Financial abuse through insurance can compound the negative affects of domestic and family violence.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/trouble-problem-concept-domestic-violence-upset-2076039835">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>As a starting point, every general insurer should denounce financial abuse in their terms and conditions – following the lead of the Australian banking industry. So far, 14 banks have adopted this recommendation and are refusing to tolerate misuse of their products as a tactic of coercive control. </p>
<p>These changes would build on the significant progress the general insurance industry has made to support victim-survivors and drive greater consistency. The General Insurance Code of Practice sets a benchmark for self-regulation, and detailed guidance outlines better customer service practices for those experiencing domestic and family violence. All insurers are required to have a domestic and family violence policy, and some insurers have set up specialist teams and provided extra training. </p>
<p>The law also needs to be modernised because it’s stifling changes that would give victim-survivors better protection. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/when-care-becomes-control-financial-abuse-cuts-across-cultures-70754">When care becomes control - financial abuse cuts across cultures</a>
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<p>The Insurance Contracts Act was written in 1984, just ten years after the first modern women’s refuge was established in Australia and well before domestic and family violence became an urgent national conversation. </p>
<p>Despite calls in <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2022-08/p2004-review-insurance-contracts-act-1984-final-report_1.pdf">2004</a> and <a href="https://financialrights.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/210823_FamilyViolenceResearch_FINAL.pdf">2021</a> for the law to address cases in which a victim-survivor was denied a claim because of a wilful act or other breach by the perpetrator, legislation remains unchanged. Yet this type of behaviour is one of the <a href="https://www.allianz.com.au/content/dam/onemarketing/aal/au_site/documents/about-us/understanding-family-violence-and-the-risks-of-insurance.pdf">most common</a> ways insurance is used in family violence. </p>
<p>Two insurers, <a href="https://www.aami.com.au/aami/documents/personal/home/aami-home-building-insurance-pds.pdf">AAMI</a> and <a href="https://www.suncorp.com.au/content/dam/suncorp/insurance/suncorp-insurance/documents/home-and-contents/home/suncorp-insurance-home-contents-insurance-product-disclosure-statement.pdf">Suncorp</a>, have introduced a “conduct of others” clause to provide flexibility to pay a claim in these cases, even where there is no legal requirement to do so. </p>
<p>While these are positive moves, it’s slow progress. It’s time Australian insurers and regulators addressed this gap.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224632/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Catherine Fitzpatrick is Founder and Director of Flequity Ventures, a social enterprise which aims to disrupt financial abuse and gender bias through more flexible, safe and equitable product and service design. She received funding from the Centre for Women's Economic Safety to write the Designed to Disrupt report and continues to be affiliated. She is a former bank executive with roles managing customer complaints including those related to general insurance, domestic violence support and government relations. She has previously been engaged by the Insurance Council of Australia to provide guidance on safety by design in insurance.</span></em></p>Insurance is supposed to be a safety net, but it can be weaponised in domestic and family violence situations. There’s a lot we can do to better protect victim-survivors.Catherine Fitzpatrick, Adjunct Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2226652024-03-07T15:00:05Z2024-03-07T15:00:05ZFemicide in Italy: A modern phenomenon deeply rooted in country’s cultural past<p>“Femicide is not a crime of passion, it is a crime of power,” wrote Elena Cecchettin <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/25/anger-across-italy-as-killing-of-student-highlights-countrys-femicide-rate">after her sister</a> was killed in November 2023.</p>
<p>Italian student Giulia Cecchettin, 22, was killed allegedly by her controlling ex-boyfriend, Filippo Turetta, a fellow student at a university in Padua. Not being able to handle the breakup, Turetta <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-67530529">lured Giulia into one last shopping trip together</a> before killing her, prosecutors claim. Her body, <a href="https://www.ilmessaggero.it/en/life_behind_bars_filippo_turetta_s_new_routine-7910899.html">with more than 20 stab wounds</a>, was found at the bottom of a ditch. Turetta fled to Germany, was caught <a href="https://www.ilmessaggero.it/en/life_behind_bars_filippo_turetta_s_new_routine-7910899.html">and is now behind bars awaiting trial in Italy</a>, according to the latest reports from Italy. </p>
<p>Cecchettin’s case has grabbed headlines in Italy <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/01/06/opinion/stop-ignoring-violence-against-women-in-italy/">and worldwide</a>. But it is not unique. Femicide – <a href="https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/english/femicide#:%7E:text=%2F%CB%88fem%C9%AAsa%C9%AAd%2F-,%2F%CB%88fem%C9%AAsa%C9%AAd%2F,girl%20because%20she%20is%20female">the act of killing women on account of their gender</a> – is worryingly common in Italy. At least <a href="https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2023/12/11/109-women-murdered-in-italy-so-far-in-2023-study_b1b82904-4d40-47e6-8758-ed3450567548.html#:%7E:text=As%20of%20December%203%2C%20109,criminal%20police%20presented%20on%20Monday">109 women were killed in Italy in 2023</a>; more than half were murdered by a partner or an ex-partner.</p>
<p>International <a href="https://www.europeandatajournalism.eu/cp_data_news/in-italy-femicides-are-not-decreasing-like-homicides/">comparisons on femicide rates can be difficult</a>, but those who do track such numbers suggest that Italy’s femicide problem has been persistent. So much so that cultural organization <a href="https://inarea.com/en/case-study/treccani/">the Institute of the Italian Encyclopedia Treccani</a> chose “femicide” as <a href="https://www.unionesarda.it/en/the-word-of-the-year-for-2023-treccani-chooses-quot-femicidequot-ozm95r5j">2023’s word of the year</a>.</p>
<p>In an attempt to address the high rates of femicide, on Dec. 12, 2023, a new law went into effect in Italy titled <a href="https://www.loc.gov/item/global-legal-monitor/2023-12-27/italy-new-law-to-combat-violence-against-women-and-domestic-violence-enters-into-effect">Provisions for Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence</a>. Although the law strengthens protection for women by broadening the definition of unlawful conduct related to domestic violence and by increasing penalties for offenders, the legislation has its limits.</p>
<p>One of the ministers who proposed that law, Eugenia Maria Roccella, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/22/world/europe/italy-giulia-cecchettin-violence-against-women.html">emphasized how laws had failed to protect Giulia Cecchettin</a>, or “any other women who did not suspect the violence brooding in the heart of the man who claimed to love them.” </p>
<p>Indeed, Elena Cecchettin pointed at a cultural factor in the killing of her sister and other women in Italy: a patriarchal society in which male violence and control has long been accepted. “<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-67514334">Monsters are healthy sons of the patriarchy and rape culture</a>,” she said.</p>
<h2>The Roman rule</h2>
<p>Femicide is a cultural phenomenon with deep roots that go back millennia.</p>
<p>Many premodern societies were patriarchal and violent, but Italy is in many ways unique. The legacies of the Roman Empire, Italian Fascism and Roman Catholicism still loom large. Each, I would argue, has contributed to a modern Italy in which male violence has been normalized. </p>
<p>The history of Rome is <a href="https://www.thefrenchhistorypodcast.com/metoo-and-roman-rape-culture-with-darah-vann-orr/">inseparable from misogyny and rape</a>; it is present in the city-state’s origin story. When Romulus found his newly born city bereft of women, he trapped unmarried girls and women from the neighboring Sabine tribe and kept them as Roman concubines. By the time the Sabines sought revenge, many of the tribe’s daughters and sisters were either carrying or had given birth to Romans. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Sabine">The women</a>, so the story goes, ran onto the battlefield as live shields to <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/359809">secure peace between their fathers and Roman captors</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A painting depicts women being abducted by Romen men." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580308/original/file-20240306-18-2g9zim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580308/original/file-20240306-18-2g9zim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580308/original/file-20240306-18-2g9zim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580308/original/file-20240306-18-2g9zim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580308/original/file-20240306-18-2g9zim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580308/original/file-20240306-18-2g9zim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580308/original/file-20240306-18-2g9zim.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pietro da Cortona’s painting ‘Rape of the Sabine Women.’</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/Cortona_Rape_of_the_Sabine_Women_01.jpg">Wikmedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Roman women were treated as second-class citizens. During <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Colosseum">gladiator fights</a>, women were allowed to <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/please-find-your-seats-evidence-seating-plan-discovered-colosseum-180954023/">sit only in the worst seats</a>, next to the slaves. Women’s disobedience resulted in severe physical punishment, with instances of Roman women being <a href="https://blogs.unimelb.edu.au/shaps-research/2022/06/01/domestic-violence-and-the-law-in-ancient-rome/">kicked to death, drowned and thrown from windows</a>. </p>
<p>Higher social status did not protect women. Emperor <a href="https://blogs.unimelb.edu.au/shaps-research/2022/06/01/domestic-violence-and-the-law-in-ancient-rome/">Nero’s first wife and his mother were murdered on his orders</a>; Nero’s second wife was kicked to death while pregnant. Even <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Vestal-Virgins">Vestal Virgins</a>, holy Roman priestesses, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Vestal-Virgins">were buried alive</a> if they violated their vow of chastity or let the eternal flame die. </p>
<p>While prostitutes and actresses <a href="https://www.focus.it/cultura/curiosita/che-cose-la-suburra">were traded</a>, <a href="https://www.focus.it/cultura/storia/diritto-di-bacio-antica-roma">raped and killed</a>, noble women were subject to “<a href="https://historicaleve.com/right-to-kiss-in-ancient-rome/">the right to kiss</a>.” Through that law, male relatives were allowed to “test” women to make sure they had not drunk wine. Violating that “right to kiss” and the no-alcohol policy <a href="https://www.focus.it/cultura/storia/diritto-di-bacio-antica-roma">was punishable by death</a>.</p>
<p>Misogyny was so endemic that Roman law <a href="https://theconversation.com/ancient-rome-didnt-have-specific-domestic-violence-legislation-but-the-laws-they-had-give-us-a-window-into-a-world-of-abuse-179460">focused on preserving a woman’s chastity</a> rather than on punishing the perpetrator in the case of rape. Roman centurion <a href="https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/libertatis-virginia-killed-by-her-father-to-protect-her-from-appius-claudius-221779">Lucius Verginius killed his daughter</a> to protect her chastity from an abuser, Appius Claudius. </p>
<p>This misogynist culture has been celebrated through art, education and cinematography. For example, works by Giambolognia, Rubens, Poussin and Picasso all depict the rape of Sabines, with pieces <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/359809">on display in New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art</a> and in <a href="https://www.theflorentine.net/2022/06/14/new-summer-opening-hours-at-the-accademia-gallery/">Florence’s Accademia Gallery</a>. </p>
<p>Roman patriarchal legacy is prevalent in pop culture, too. From “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043949/">Quo Vadis</a>” to “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052618/">Ben-Hur</a>” and “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0172495/">Gladiator</a>,” movies have glorified a violent time in which strong men were venerated. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, many contemporary men are – as it has been recently claimed – <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/15/style/roman-empire-men-tiktok-instagram.html">obsessed with the Roman Empire</a>. </p>
<p>So too are cultural industries. Cinecittà film studios’ gladiator series “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/jul/14/hollywood-on-the-tiber-cinecitta-stars-return-to-rome-studios-heston-fellini">Those About to Die</a>” has become <a href="https://variety.com/2023/film/global/roland-emmerich-those-about-to-die-prime-video-1235684470/">an international hit</a>.</p>
<p>For a certain type of modern man, Rome represents an escape from <a href="https://www.genderspecialist.com/blog/whymenareobsessedwithrome">egalitarian norms</a>, allowing them to reclaim a perceived loss of male power. </p>
<h2>The Fascist touch</h2>
<p>Italian society also continues to be influenced by fascism, an ideology <a href="https://phillipian.net/2023/12/15/hypermasculinity-and-the-rise-of-fascism/">steeped in male violence</a>.</p>
<p>Fascism, introduced to Italy by Benito Mussolini in the 1930s, held <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1394751">procreation as the main woman’s duty</a>. Women were defined in terms of their full subordination to men and in regards to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/026569149302300103">their role in the family and in motherhood</a>. </p>
<p>Nearly 100 years later, the legacy of fascism is alive in Italy. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni praised Mussolini in her youth, and her own right-wing political party, Fratelli d’Italia, is a <a href="https://theconversation.com/giorgia-meloni-the-political-provocateur-set-to-become-italys-first-far-right-leader-since-mussolini-190116">descendant of the Italian Social Movement party</a> that was <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/italy-mussolini-denies-rehabbing-fascism-after-army-calendar-outcry/">founded by former fascists</a>. </p>
<p>And as a new TV show about Mussolini’s rise, “<a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/en/m-le-mag/article/2023/12/21/in-rome-cinecitta-studios-embraces-new-golden-age_6365899_117.html">M: Son of the Century</a>,” shows, the fascist leader remains in the national consciousness. So too does the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/may/04/what-do-incels-fascists-and-terrorists-have-in-common-violent-misogyny">toxic “masculinism</a>” that became associated with fascism, finding a new audience among incels as a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/08912432221128545">rationale to legitimize anti-woman violence</a>. </p>
<h2>The Catholic grip</h2>
<p>Catholicism has also, I believe, helped <a href="https://www.scirp.org/journal/paperinformation?paperid=71987">normalize patriarchy and misogyny</a> in Italy. </p>
<p>Catholicism is at the core of the so-called “<a href="https://www.modernintimacy.com/the-psychology-of-the-madonna-whore-complex/">Madonna-whore complex</a>,” in which women are seen as being either chaste and virtuous or promiscuous and immoral. Theorists have long explored how that dichotomy is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/aps.1831">steeped in misogyny</a>. Stereotypes based on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/07491409.2013.832088">that dichotomy</a> have been used to justify perpetrators’ violence against women.</p>
<p>Take the example of Roman baroque painter Artemisia Gentileschi, who <a href="https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/exhibitions/past/artemisia/artemisias-rape-trial">was raped by her painter-mentor</a>, Agostino Tassi, in 1611 at the age of 17. She gave testimony in court, was physically tortured during the trial and treated as a promiscuous seductress. </p>
<p>Tassi was protected by the pope and set free; Gentileschi, despite being <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2016/oct/05/artemisia-gentileshi-painter-beyond-caravaggio">a brilliant artist</a>, was shamed and erased from public memory for centuries.</p>
<p>The influence of Catholicism has also contributed to customs and a legal system that can make women more vulnerable. Italy’s abortion laws allow Catholic doctors to “<a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8106580/#:%7E:text=Data%20from%20the%20Italian%20Ministry,increased%20over%20the%20last%20decade.">conscientiously object</a>” to performing a termination, forcing women seeking the procedure to <a href="https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2022/09/23/the-difficulties-of-getting-an-abortion-in-italy">travel across the country or abroad</a>.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Catholic <a href="https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/grace-margins/church-must-face-its-own-role-violence-against-women">doctrine on contraception and abortion</a> has forced women – even those made pregnant through rape or facing high-risk pregnancies – to give birth.</p>
<p>Research also suggests the Catholic Church’s teachings on divorce may <a href="https://doi.org//10.4236/psych.2016.713155">cut off a route of escape</a> for women trapped in violent relationships. </p>
<h2>The deadly passion</h2>
<p>Meanwhile, Italy’s patriarchal traditions have bled into law and society in other ways.</p>
<p>The mandating of extreme leniency to those implicated in <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/italy-giulia-cecchettin-confronts-its-toxic-culture-of-violence-against-women/">the killing of “spouses, daughters and sisters caught in illicit sex</a>” was written into the country’s penal code until 1981. And even today, public figures refer to “<a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/italy-giulia-cecchettin-confronts-its-toxic-culture-of-violence-against-women/">crimes of passion</a>” and “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/how-italy-has-changed-its-view-on-murdering-women/2016/11/02/8f22d42a-930b-11e6-bc00-1a9756d4111b_story.html">honor killings</a>” in reference to the killing of women involved in “illicit” sexual relations. </p>
<p>Femicides do not occur in a vacuum; they are the outcome of a society that legitimizes violence against women. And while I believe changes to the law to better protect Italy’s women are welcome, looking at the country’s culture – both past and present – may also be a necessary step. Until then, Italy’s daughters will not be safe, or fully free.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/222665/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julia Khrebtan-Hörhager does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A spate of recent high-profile murders has put focus on the role of patriarchy and misogyny in persistent rates of anti-woman violence in Italy.Julia Khrebtan-Hörhager, Associate Professor of Critical Cultural & International Studies, Colorado State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2209832024-01-17T13:07:08Z2024-01-17T13:07:08ZWhy police in England and Wales are failing to warn people about partners’ previous abuse<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569035/original/file-20240112-29-vo063t.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/birmingham-england-september-17-2019-main-1798441609">Michael715|Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Since 2014, the police in England and Wales have had powers to warn someone when they know their partner poses a real risk of danger, under what is known as <a href="https://theconversation.com/domestic-abuse-bill-proposed-changes-to-protect-victims-explained-110258">Clare’s Law</a> (the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme). Police can also offer the information if they identify a person at risk. Disclosures can include any kind of information held in police records that indicates a risk of abuse. </p>
<p>In early January 2024, journalist Shanti Das reported that <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/jan/06/revealed-police-refusing-requests-for-background-checks-on-violent-partners#:%7E:text=Under%20Clare's%20law%20%E2%80%93%20named%20after,who%20may%20be%20in%20danger.">some forces</a> are refusing to release such information. Analysing government data for 43 forces, Das uncovered significant differences in response rates to Clare’s Law applications. Some forces disclose in response to 75% of requests, many to less than 30%, and at least one, to as little as 5%. </p>
<p>My <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/14773708221128249">research </a> shows that being given this kind of information can be invaluable to victims of domestic abuse, because of the way perpetrators use secrecy and lies to exert control. </p>
<h2>Why Clare’s Law disclosures can be life changing for victims</h2>
<p>Each time a serial perpetrator starts a new relationship, they spin a false narrative about their past, using secrecy and lies to exert control. This might involve <a href="https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/When_Love_Goes_Wrong/ztmgehKSrNYC?hl=en">explaining away</a> rumours or reports of past abuse as malicious allegations by a “crazy” ex-partner, or pretending previous convictions are for shoplifting, say, or self-defence. </p>
<p>As the relationship develops and the abuse begins, perpetrators use psychological manipulation to blame their partner for their own behaviour – telling them that they deserve the abuse or that they made it happen. “<a href="https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Look_what_You_Made_Me_Do/FlQyswEACAAJ?hl=en">Look what you made me do</a>” is a phrase that exemplifies how perpetrators twist and distort the truth to expand their scope for control over their victim’s lives and minds. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Police officers in hi-vis vests." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569037/original/file-20240112-21-bzcggb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569037/original/file-20240112-21-bzcggb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=379&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569037/original/file-20240112-21-bzcggb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=379&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569037/original/file-20240112-21-bzcggb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=379&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569037/original/file-20240112-21-bzcggb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569037/original/file-20240112-21-bzcggb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569037/original/file-20240112-21-bzcggb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=476&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Police officers can help to identify serial predators.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/police-officer-on-duty-city-centre-651846142">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>The value of Clare’s Law lies in its potential to counter these aspects of abuse.</p>
<p>Police often hold multiple reports of the same kind of abuse from different victims of the same perpetrator – sometimes over many years. Revealing these distinct patterns of abuse <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/14773708221128249">can disprove and disrupt</a> the perpetrator’s narrative. </p>
<p>More importantly, it can expose them for what they are: not a misunderstood or troubled person doing their best, but a serial perpetrator with a distinct repertoire of cruelty that they repeatedly inflict on partner after partner. </p>
<h2>Responding to information requests is expensive</h2>
<p>The police receive a domestic-abuse-related call <a href="https://refuge.org.uk/what-is-domestic-abuse/the-facts/#:%7E:text=Fact%3A%20The%20police%20receive%20a,is%20reported%20to%20the%20police.">every 30 seconds</a>. Domestic abuse accounts for <a href="https://www.cps.gov.uk/cps/news/national-police-chiefs-council-crown-prosecution-service-and-college-policing-commit">a third of violent crime</a>. </p>
<p>Despite police leaders <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/sep/17/watchdog-finds-staggering-variation-in-police-use-of-clares-law">agreeing</a> that it is one of their top priorities, some forces make hardly any disclosures under Clare’s Law. Why? The first reason is, unsurprisingly, resources. At least three forces have told me that they have reduced or stopped promoting Clare’s Law simply because they cannot cope with the backlog. </p>
<p>Between 2021 and 2023, police in England and Wales received nearly 84,000 requests for disclosure. Essex police, a medium-sized force, currently has a dedicated team of 20 officers working to respond to these requests. </p>
<p>This significant pressure on forces is only intensified by the <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6489ab97103ca6000c039ea0/Domestic_Violence_Disclosure_Scheme.pdf">Home Office requirement</a> that the disclosure be completed within 28 days of an application being made– down from 35 days in 2022. Failure to meet this target sees the force get marked down by the HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services. </p>
<p>But that requirement has been made without the government providing the police with any extra funds to meet it. This matters because responding to a request is resource intensive. </p>
<p>Some people have long and varied criminal histories. Police databases, however, don’t allow officers to search within that history for domestic abuse. So officers have to look at every single recorded incident to see if it is related to domestic abuse, or otherwise indicates a relevant risk. </p>
<p>The process is further complicated by jurisdiction. If relevant events in a person’s history occurred when they lived in another force area, the officer may need to call that force and ask them to do an additional search.</p>
<h2>Interpretation and data sharing difficulties</h2>
<p>Another related problem is that, though disclosures can be made to anyone deemed at risk, some forces <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10439463.2020.1795169">interpret</a> this very narrowly. They only disclose information to someone who is living with the person of interest, or currently in a relationship with that person. </p>
<p>This is despite it being a well-established fact that, in situations of domestic abuse, <a href="https://www.womensaid.org.uk/information-support/what-is-domestic-abuse/women-leave/">the risks escalate</a> when a relationship is ending. Disclosing information at this point can reassure victims that they made the right decision to leave – and help them to stay away.</p>
<p>Also, police forces can be <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10439463.2020.1795169">wary of sharing data</a> – concerned about litigation from angry perpetrators. This has led some forces to decide that they will not disclose information about incidents that have not resulted in a conviction, even when that information indicates a serious risk.</p>
<p>However, very few domestic abuse crimes reported to the police <a href="https://www.cps.gov.uk/cps/news/cps-publishes-latest-quarterly-statistics-which-show-continued-increase-people-charged#:%7E:text=Conviction%20rates%20have%20decreased%20by,hate%20crime%20(0.5%25)%20cases.">result in a conviction</a>. As a result, these forces will inevitably have very low disclosure rates. And that’s because they are refusing to disclose relevant information about people they know to be dangerous. </p>
<p>This puts victims at risk by reassuring them, falsely, that there is nothing to disclose. Yet, to my knowledge, not a single legal claim on grounds of privacy violation or otherwise has been brought successfully against police in the decade since Clare’s Law was introduced. Police need to stop worrying about data protection and litigation, and focus on protecting victims. </p>
<p>A third and more concerning reason relates to cultural resistance, among some officers, to the police leadership’s decision to treat domestic abuse as a serious crime and a policing priority. In 2023 <a href="https://www.met.police.uk/police-forces/metropolitan-police/areas/about-us/about-the-met/bcr/baroness-casey-review/">the Casey investigation</a> into the culture at the Met police found the country’s largest police force to be institutionally misogynist. It is unlikely to be the only one. </p>
<p>I am conducting a national <a href="http://tinyurl.com/ClaresLawSurvey">survey</a> of people who have accessed Clare’s Law. My initial findings show that some police forces say they will only make a disclosure if the applicant reports their partner as a criminal. Other applicants describe being made to “prove” they are still at risk. </p>
<p>Others still say police told them that if they have experienced abuse themselves, then they already know they are at risk and don’t need the information. Only rigorous recruitment into domestic abuse roles, proper training and strictly enforced lines of accountability can start to address this deeper problem.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/220983/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katerina Hadjimatheou receives funding from the British Academy</span></em></p>Being given information about the violent past of a current partner can be life changing. Police forces need better resources to be able to process requests.Katerina Hadjimatheou, Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Ethics, University of EssexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2181612024-01-16T16:15:39Z2024-01-16T16:15:39ZDomestic violence: criminalising coercive control in France could bring more justice to victims<p>Over the last decade in many European countries, legislators, magistrates, government ministers, law enforcement agencies, lawyers and service providers have recognised that prevailing approaches to domestic violence were failing and have adopted the new model of “coercive control” to reframe domestic violence as a crime against rights and resources rather than as an assault.</p>
<h2>Criminalising coercive control</h2>
<p>In 2021, the <a href="https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre#%7B%22itemid%22:%5B%22001-213869%22%5D%7D">European Court of Human Rights</a> instructed authorities to “promptly” revise the legal definition of domestic violence so that it covers “manifestations of controlling and coercive behaviour”.</p>
<p>Drawing on interviews with several hundred French professionals, victims, service providers and academics, the <a href="https://medias.vie-publique.fr/data_storage_s3/rapport/pdf/289498.pdf">Chandler-Vérien French parliamentary mission on domestic violence</a> tasked by Prime Minister Borne with improving the judicial treatment of domestic violence stressed the urgency of translating coercive control into law and called on coercive control to be at the core of future information campaigns and professional training.</p>
<p>The French Ministers for Equality between Women and Men <a href="https://twitter.com/BCouillard33/status/1705252762450079761">Bérangère Couillard</a> and <a href="https://www.librairie-des-femmes.fr/livre/9782234096677-la-fin-de-l-impunite-pour-une-revolution-judiciaire-et-juridique-en-matiere-de-violences-faites-aux-femmes-isabelle-rome/">Isabelle Rome</a>, an experienced magistrate, have stated their will to move forward with this approach to domestic violence. In a groundbreaking criminal hearing at the Poitiers Court of Appeal held in November 2023, First President <a href="https://www.librairiedalloz.fr/livre/9782369450900-elle-l-a-bien-cherche-la-justice-et-la-lutte-contre-les-violences-faites-aux-femmes-gwenola-joly-coz/">Gwenola Joly-Coz</a> and Attorney General <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ec-eric-corbaux-78a3a8a6_le-13-d%C3%A9cembre-jai-eu-le-plaisir-d%C3%AAtre-activity-7140963261486714882-apXl/?originalSubdomain=fr">Eric Corbaux</a> used the framework of coercive control in all the domestic violence cases. The court’s decisions are expected in January 2024.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Isabelle Lonvis-Rome, former Minister Delegate for Equality between Women and Men, wants the concept of ‘coercive control’, which covers predatory behaviour deployed by a man to subjugate his spouse, to be better taken into account by the justice system (Public Sénat).</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We believe that enacting a coercive control offence in France would be a significant advance in the equality agenda. Criminalising such behaviour would help protect <a href="https://arretonslesviolences.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2020-11/Lettre%20n%C2%B016%20-%20Les%20violences%20au%20sein%20du%20couple%20et%20les%20violences%20sexuelles%20en%202019.pdf">213,000 women</a>, <a href="https://www.ihemi.fr/sites/default/files/publications/files/2019-12/flash_21_violences_au_sein_du_couple_.pdf">82% of whom are mothers</a>, and their <a href="https://www.haut-conseil-egalite.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/hce_-_tableau_de_bord_d_indicateurs_-_politique_de_lutte_contre_les_violences_conjugales.pdf">398,310 children, who are also victims of domestic violence</a>, and so prevent the deaths of hundreds of partners, ex-partners and children every year.</p>
<h2>Coercive control: a “liberty crime”</h2>
<p>Coercive control has been referred to as a <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/coercive-control-9780195384048">“liberty crime”</a> because of the experience of entrapment it produces, analogous to being held hostage. The rights infringed upon include autonomy, dignity and self-determination, even more so when victims have a disability. Unless the perpetrators’ range of actions are framed as a single malevolent course of conduct and stopped, this pattern of abuse and exploitation may continue for years, undetected.</p>
<p>The French and international situation described by one of us in the 2023 book <a href="https://www.dunod.com/sciences-humaines-et-sociales/controle-coercitif-au-coeur-violence-conjugale"><em>Coercive Control: At the Heart of Domestic Violence</em></a> (<em>Le Contrôle coercitif au cœur de la violence conjugale</em>) reflects three bodies of evidence : </p>
<ul>
<li><p>current domestic-violence laws have failed to hold perpetrators accountable and to protect victims, mainly women and children; </p></li>
<li><p>the lack of social control and legal sanctions encourages aggravation and recidivism, creating a revolving door in French courts and prisons; </p></li>
<li><p>victims confront situations that more closely resemble captivity than an assault.</p></li>
</ul>
<h2>A system of impunity</h2>
<p>The French state’s High Council for Equality has found that the conviction rate for perpetrators of domestic violence amounted to a <a href="https://www.haut-conseil-egalite.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/hce_-_indicateurs_violences_conjugales_-_2019-2.pdf">“true system of impunity”</a>. The gap between the current criminalisation of domestic violence and its reality as <a href="https://www.ciivise.fr/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Avis-meres-en-lutte.pdf">experienced by victims</a> can <a href="https://www.mediapart.fr/journal/france/181119/justice-la-perte-de-confiance">erode trust in the justice system</a>.</p>
<p>The conviction rate of perpetrators and the number of domestic homicides in France reflect the perpetrators’ lack of accountability. In 2022, <a href="https://mobile.interieur.gouv.fr/Publications/Securite-interieure/Etude-nationale-sur-les-morts-violentes-au-sein-du-couple-pour-l-annee-2022">118 women, 29 men and 12 children were killed</a>. In 2021, <a href="https://www.interieur.gouv.fr/actualites/actualites-du-ministere/etude-nationale-sur-morts-violentes-au-sein-du-couple-2021">121 feminicides</a> were officially recorded, a situation that is even more alarming if we add the <a href="https://arretonslesviolences.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2022-11/Lettre%20n%C2%B018%20-%20Les%20violences%20au%20sein%20du%20couple%20et%20les%20violences%20sexuelles%20en%202021.pdf">684 women who attempted suicide or committed suicide</a> as a result of “domestic harassment”. This failure, which takes place despite the <a href="https://www.ccomptes.fr/fr/publications/la-politique-degalite-entre-les-femmes-et-les-hommes-menee-par-letat">efforts made</a>, highlights the link between the ineffectiveness of the current understanding and criminalisation of domestic violence and its focus on acts that are poor markers of its most dangerous forms.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Andreea-Gruev-Vintila/publication/360756577_Violences_au_sein_du_couple_pour_une_consecration_penale_du_controle_coercitif/links/6289e95c6e41e5002d3a6107/Violences-au-sein-du-couple-pour-une-consecration-penale-du-controle-coercitif.pdf">situation in France</a> is not unique. In 2016, when the Home Secretary discovered that England was spending more on policing domestic violence than on National Defense, but that neither domestic homicides nor reports of partner violence to police had declined, she called for an <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-to-create-new-domestic-abuse-offence">entirely new approach</a> and adopted “coercive control” to replace all 14 definitions of domestic violence in use by health and social services in Britain. Similarly, in 2018 the Scottish parliament unanimously adopted <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2018/5/contents/enacted">Domestic Abuse Act</a>, a crime built around elements of coercive control that carried a maximum 14-year prison sentence, the same as murder.</p>
<h2>Surveillance, isolation, intimidation, control, personalised credible threats</h2>
<p>Since one of us published <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/coercive-control-9780195384048"><em>Coercive Control: How Men Entrap Women in Personal Life</em></a> in 2007, in 2007, more than 1,000 monographs and countless survivor testimonials support the view that coercive control should be the primary focus of state intervention in abuse cases, not domestic violence, including the arrest and prosecution of perpetrators, protection, support and empowerment services for victims and protections for children.</p>
<p>The book presents evidence that 75% of the domestic violence incidents that currently lead to arrest are repeated assaults committed by a small proportion of offenders in the context of complimentary abusive behaviours, including sexual assaults, stalking, and other attempts to intimidate victims, and tactics to isolate and control them by taking their money, depriving them of resources and regulating their lives as well as those of their children.</p>
<p>In most cases, violence and/or sexual abuse is accompanied by intimidation, isolation, control tactics, and personalised credible threats. These begin in the house and can extend to every activity, including work, and involve children, other family members and unrelated others, including professionals, as spies, informants or co-victims.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569518/original/file-20240116-27-nw69v7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/569518/original/file-20240116-27-nw69v7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569518/original/file-20240116-27-nw69v7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569518/original/file-20240116-27-nw69v7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569518/original/file-20240116-27-nw69v7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569518/original/file-20240116-27-nw69v7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/569518/original/file-20240116-27-nw69v7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The coercive control of women by men is the most important cause and context of violence against children and child homicide outside war zones.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">iStock</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Because perpetrators aim to monopolise all the resources and privileges available in a relationship or family space, their adult partner is usually their primary target. But any person who is seen as obstructing this monopoly is likely to be targeted as a secondary victim, including children, grandparents, siblings, friends, neighbours, coworkers, as well as law and social services professionals. <a href="https://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2018/5/contents/enacted">Scotland’s inclusion of “child abuse”</a> as one element of the crime of coercive control highlights how easy it is for police, courts and child protection professionals to miss the frequency with children of all ages are “weaponised”, enlisted as confederates or made into “adjoined victims” by perpetrators who want to use them to hurt or control their mothers.</p>
<p>The effects of these tactics on the adult victims and their <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1162908823000373">children</a> range from paralysing fear, psychological dependence, <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/coercive-control-in-childrens-and-mothers-lives-9780190922214">child and mother sabotage</a>, <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/376515993_'Swim_swim_and_die_at_the_beach'_family_court_and_perpetrator_induced_trauma_CPIT_experiences_of_mothers_in_Brazil">court and perpetrator-induced trauma</a>, and impoverishment to “the death from a thousand cuts”, suicidality and fatality.</p>
<h2>What about the children?</h2>
<p>Coercive control of women by men is the most important cause of <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-coercive-control-of-children-9780197587096">violence against children and child homicide outside war zones</a>. This often occurs after a separation, in the context of legal proceedings relating to the child’s custody and parental rights or during visiting rights. The aggressor can feel that the only way to punish his partner is to <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/coercive-control-in-childrens-and-mothers-lives-9780190922214">sabotage her relationship with the children</a> or injure or kill them, as we tragically experienced in France this year with <a href="https://www.leparisien.fr/hauts-de-seine-92/courbevoie-92400/infanticide-dans-les-hauts-de-seine-une-petite-fille-de-3-ans-succombe-a-ses-blessures-12-05-2023-UDIZS7ZYLBCS7JN2V5MVUN4JEE.php">the homicide of little Chloé, aged 5, by her father</a> whose mother had filed for divorce and against whom she had obtained a protection order.</p>
<p>The child is an <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/09646639221089252">adjoined victim</a> in these cases, where the risk can only be deciphered in terms of the coercive control over the mother. The importance of extending protection to children in a law on coercive control was highlighted by a <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/366393524_Contribution_au_Rapport_UNSRVAW_violence_a_l%27egard_des_femmes_et_des_enfants_dans_les_affaires_concernant_la_residence_des_enfants_les_droits_de_visite_l%27autorite_parentale_-_France">French contribution</a> to a <a href="https://undocs.org/Home/Mobile">UN report</a> on violence against women and girls, judges’ request to <a href="https://www.dalloz-actualite.fr/node/comment-mieux-lutter-contre-feminicides-libres-propos-sur-controle-coercitif">include coercive control in French family law</a>, and recent <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/fran%C3%A7oise-fericelli-13b273147_violences-intrafamiliales-et-protection-des-activity-7097855544564047872-RIo3/">family law jurisprudence</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/218161/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Les auteurs ne travaillent pas, ne conseillent pas, ne possèdent pas de parts, ne reçoivent pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'ont déclaré aucune autre affiliation que leur organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>The concept of “coercive control” reframes domestic violence as an attack on human rights and resources rather than an assault.Evan Stark, Professeur émérite, sociologue, Rutgers UniversityAndreea Gruev-Vintila, Maîtresse de conférences HDR en psychologie sociale, Université Paris Nanterre – Université Paris LumièresLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2208892024-01-11T17:16:15Z2024-01-11T17:16:15ZWhat Fargo season five gets right about toxic masculinity and domestic violence<p><em>Warning: includes spoilers for the first eight episodes of Fargo season five.</em></p>
<p>The latest series of Fargo includes a two-minute tracking shot that focuses on the menacing face of the sheriff, ranch owner, evangelical Christian and Donald Trump supporter Roy Tillman (Jon Hamm). He is filmed in tight close-up as he stomps through the snow to a small barn that houses his chained former wife, the show’s heroine Dot Lyon (Juno Temple).</p>
<p>The scene is accompanied by Lisa Hannigan’s slow and haunting cover of Britney Spear’s hit song Toxic, which was rearranged specifically for the series by composer Jeff Russo.</p>
<p>It makes for tense and difficult viewing. The audience have witnessed Tillman’s casual violence towards women throughout the series. He has just been humiliated in a political debate, and is clearly hellbent on redeeming his tarnished masculine self-image by doubling down on the recaptured young wife who had the temerity to escape his clutches. </p>
<p>As this brief plot outline suggests, domestic violence is at the heart of Fargo’s fifth season and each episode ends with a list of domestic abuse hotlines. </p>
<p>The priority given to this theme has, however, provoked some negative responses. Forbes critic <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2024/01/07/why-fargo-season-5-doesnt-feel-like-fargo-anymore/?sh=33f9718c24ca">Erik Kain argues</a>, for example, that by tackling a serious social issue, Fargo has undermined its trademark humour and become too earnest.
The series – set in America’s Midwest in 2019 – has generally been hailed as a triumphant “<a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2023/11/22/fargo-amazon-prime-video-season-5-review/">return to form</a>”, though, following the less well-received series three and four. Season four marked a departure from the show’s contemporary setting, taking place during the 1950s. </p>
<p>As a feminist academic who has been writing on representations of domestic abuse <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9780230801523_3">since the noughties</a>, it has been gratifying to see the substantial increase in fictional depictions of this theme in the 21st century. I believe the success of the new Fargo series lies in the creators’ bold decision to draw direct connections between the “private” crime of domestic violence and today’s public culture of masculinity that is linked to misogyny.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The trailer for Fargo season five.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Domestic violence on screen</h2>
<p>Despite the much higher awareness of domestic violence that emerged from the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/feminism/The-second-wave-of-feminism">second-wave feminist movement</a>, mainstream films that offered a sympathetic view of abused women were <a href="https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-319-65064-7">rare in the late 20th century</a>. </p>
<p>Furthermore, they tended to rely on the casting of established female stars with a “girl next door” image to draw identification to the still-marginalised figure of the “battered wife”, such as Farrah Fawcett in The Burning Bed (1984) and Julia Roberts in Sleeping With the Enemy (1991).</p>
<p>This has shifted in the 21st century, with feminist issues once more, though in a different way, having a higher profile in mainstream culture due to global campaigns. This includes #MeToo, when women across the world reposted the hashtag indicating their status as survivors of sexual abuse. </p>
<p>Hollywood films such as Waitress (2007), The Girl on the Train (2016), The Invisible Man (2020) and TV dramas such as Angela Black (2021), Big Little Lies (2017) and Maid (2021) have featured extended domestic violence plot lines. Long-running soap operas such as Eastenders and even cosy radio soap The Archer, have also covered the topic. </p>
<p>However, as I argued in my <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/14680777.2022.2155861?needAccess=true">recent research</a>, many of these dramas present male violence towards women as a rare phenomenon, perpetuated by a few “bad apples” whose behaviour has little relation to mainstream masculine attitudes.</p>
<p>Sadly, all available evidence suggests that domestic abuse is far from abnormal. According to the World Health Organization, <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/violence-against-women">one in three women</a> globally have experienced it. It is somewhat less common in higher-income regions with greater levels of gender equality (such as Europe and the US), but the percentage of women who have experienced domestic abuse in these areas is still 20%.</p>
<h2>A cultural problem</h2>
<p>Despite its darkly comedic tone, the new series of Fargo accurately presents the abuse of women as a cultural rather than individual problem by highlighting its presence in politics, religion and the law. </p>
<p>Its depiction of sheriff and wife-beater Tillman (promoted in his election campaign as “a hard man for hard times”) challenges traditional American fantasies of rugged but benign masculine power.</p>
<p>Tillman is shown watching a televised Trump rally, then slapping his wife immediately afterwards. He draws on the authority of the church when instructing other men on how to punish their wives. To accentuate the endemic nature of gendered abuse, the other key female character, policewoman Indira Olmstead (Richa Moorjani), is subjected to financial abuse by a lazy, cheating husband who criticises her wifely skills. </p>
<p>Given Fargo’s depressing but perceptive view of endemic patriarchal abuse, it is not surprising that the all-female place of safety and recovery where heroine Lyon seeks shelter before her recapture by Tillman is called “Camp Utopia” – and turns out to be a dream. </p>
<hr>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Roberta Garrett does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>I’ve been writing on representations of domestic abuse since the noughties. It has been gratifying to see the increase in fictional depictions of this theme in the 21st century.Roberta Garrett, Senior Lecturer in Literature and Cultural Studies, University of East LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2171792023-12-19T13:17:23Z2023-12-19T13:17:23ZWhy do some men commit domestic violence? Trauma and social isolation may play a role<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565296/original/file-20231212-23-6xbunh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C2121%2C1412&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Domestic violence is experienced unevenly across the U.S.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/argument-man-and-woman-having-an-argument-at-home-royalty-free-image/1321546697">kieferpix/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Support for survivors of domestic violence is important, but to end domestic violence once and for all, society needs to understand the people who perpetrate it and how to successfully intervene.</p>
<p>Domestic violence is very common in the United States. <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs/NISVSReportonIPV_2022.pdf">Nearly half of women and men in the U.S.</a> experience sexual or physical violence, stalking or psychological harm or coercion in a romantic relationship during their lifetime. </p>
<p>Domestic violence is also experienced unevenly across the U.S population. Young people are most vulnerable, with <a href="https://cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs/NISVSReportonIPV_2022.pdf">nearly three-fourths</a> of female victims reporting that their first experience of domestic violence occurred before age 25. <a href="https://cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs/NISVSReportonIPV_2022.pdf">People of color</a> and <a href="https://cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs/nisvsReportonSexualIdentity.pdf">LGBTQ+</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305774">people</a> also experience considerably higher rates of domestic violence than the national average. And despite similar rates of domestic violence across men and women, women report <a href="https://cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs/NISVSReportonIPV_2022.pdf">more severe effects on their lives</a>, including higher rates of injury and need for medical care, needing help from law enforcement and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms.</p>
<p>I am a social worker who has spent the <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=OtG3yWgAAAAJ&hl=en">past 10 years studying</a> how men come to use violence against their intimate partners, since the <a href="https://cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/nisvs/NISVSReportonIPV_2022.pdf">effects of their violence</a> is often the most severe. My research has found that consistent supportive relationships with attentive adults in childhood and adulthood, along with stress management that takes trauma into account, are two promising approaches to prevent domestic violence.</p>
<h2>The roots of domestic violence</h2>
<p>Understanding how someone comes to perpetrate violence is necessary to stop violence from happening in the first place.</p>
<p>Certain childhood experiences can put people at risk of committing domestic violence in the future. Researchers have found that child abuse, neglect and a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2015.06.001">negative parent-child relationship</a> are significant risk factors that may lead someone to later perpetrate domestic violence. </p>
<p>Experiencing trauma in early childhood can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2011-2663">alter the brain, how the body responds to stress</a> and whether someone sees the world as a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838018791268">threatening, harmful and untrustworthy place</a>. For example, research has shown that people who have been exposed to trauma have increased activity in the amygdala of the brain, resulting in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ynstr.2014.10.002">heightened fear and arousal</a> that can lead to aggressive responses in the face of conflict and stress. Trauma exposure is also linked to a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2012.04.010">decrease in activity in the prefrontal cortex</a> – that’s the part of the brain responsible for impulse control, concentration and emotional reasoning. These are essential qualities to navigate interpersonal relationships. </p>
<p>Toxic stress – excessive or prolonged activation of the body’s stress response – happens when someone encounters constant threats to their physical or mental safety during sensitive developmental periods. Compared to their peers, youth facing <a href="https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2021-054493">disproportionate levels of hardship</a> and threats of poverty, racism and other structural inequities are at greater risk for toxic stress. These bodily changes can set kids up for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/vio0000156">PTSD, depression</a>, and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/vio0000237">alcohol or drug abuse</a> later in life, which are some of the most common risk factors of perpetrating domestic violence. One study found that nearly one-third of men in a domestic violence intervention program <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12533">reported clinical levels of PTSD</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565302/original/file-20231212-25-zhxfvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Couple arguing in hallway of home" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565302/original/file-20231212-25-zhxfvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565302/original/file-20231212-25-zhxfvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565302/original/file-20231212-25-zhxfvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565302/original/file-20231212-25-zhxfvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565302/original/file-20231212-25-zhxfvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565302/original/file-20231212-25-zhxfvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565302/original/file-20231212-25-zhxfvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">There are ways to navigate complex emotional challenges without resorting to violence.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/stressed-couple-arguing-blaming-each-other-royalty-free-image/1454529507">bymuratdeniz/E+ via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Beliefs about <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-022-00451-0">traditional gender roles</a> dictating how men and women should act is another significant contributing factor to domestic violence. Unresolved trauma mixed with rigid gender views can limit the coping skills and tools people have to navigate complex emotional challenges in romantic relationships. For example, homes that promote rigid gender scripts, such as “boys don’t cry,” and limit opportunities to learn from activities that are considered “feminine,” like caring for baby dolls, can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2011.12.022">stunt the emotional expression</a> of boys and make them less skilled in recognizing emotions in others and themselves. Anger typically becomes the most accessible emotion.</p>
<p>Certainly not all people who have faced childhood adversity and trauma are destined to perpetrate violence. Studies show that a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838017692383">secure parent-child attachment</a> and the presence of safe, nurturing relationships and environments during childhood protect against future violence. Positive childhood experiences, such as feeling understood in difficult times and having at least two nonparental adults taking interest in your life, can help. One study of over 6,000 adults in Wisconsin found that those reporting <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2019.3007">three to five positive childhood experiences</a> were 50% less likely to have depressive symptoms or poor mental health days compared to those who had fewer or no positive childhood experiences.</p>
<p>Without these protective factors, however, many children are at risk of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-005-0624-4">carrying their trauma</a> into their adolescent and adult romantic relationships.</p>
<h2>Prevention and intervention</h2>
<p>Supporting the health and well-being of society calls for research-based efforts to prevent and address domestic violence. Responsive relationships, or relationships where the other person is attentive, attuned and supportive, are a key way to improve the well-being of children and adults, including the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0235177">mental health of survivors</a> of abuse. </p>
<p>Researchers are paying more attention to the dangers of <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/aging/publications/features/lonely-older-adults.html">social isolation among adults</a>. This has been <a href="https://theconversation.com/curing-americas-loneliness-epidemic-would-make-us-healthier-fitter-and-less-likely-to-abuse-drugs-206059">exacerbated by cultural shifts</a> stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, remote work and social media. Social isolation and unhealthy social networks can be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijintrel.2019.07.005">dangerous for victims of violence</a> and damaging for someone prone to committing violence because they can <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18083890">worsen mental health conditions</a> like PTSD. <a href="https://teamchangingminds.org/">Community-based programs</a> that build supportive social networks have the potential to improve mental health risk factors for perpetrating violence.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565305/original/file-20231212-21-mlnsfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Close-up of person holding their hand on another person's shoulder in a supportive gesture" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565305/original/file-20231212-21-mlnsfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565305/original/file-20231212-21-mlnsfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565305/original/file-20231212-21-mlnsfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565305/original/file-20231212-21-mlnsfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565305/original/file-20231212-21-mlnsfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565305/original/file-20231212-21-mlnsfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565305/original/file-20231212-21-mlnsfc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Supportive social networks are essential for mental health.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/hand-of-young-supportive-man-consoling-his-friend-royalty-free-image/1430601013">shironosov/iStock via Getty Images Plus</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Most <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838018791268">domestic violence intervention programs for men</a> have not incorporated the understanding that trauma registers in the body as much as it does in someone’s way of thinking. These programs mostly focus on unlearning abusive tendencies and relearning healthy ways of engagement. This kind of approach includes using workbooks and thought exercises to identify abusive behaviors and thoughts about subjugating women, understand why they’re harmful, and learn healthy ways to resolve conflict. </p>
<p>However, focusing on cognitive thought processes as the primary mechanism for change by itself is insufficient for lasting change. In order to meaningfully alter the effects of trauma, interventions must also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105033">engage autonomic brain processes</a>. </p>
<p>Interventions that focus on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838018791268">regulating stress and emotions</a>, such as deep breathing and mindfulness, can help address physiological symptoms of trauma and reset the body’s stress response. Resetting the body’s stress response can then help people engage in the higher-level learning necessary to adopt nonviolent thinking and behaviors and discard abusive tendencies.</p>
<p>Alleviating symptoms of PTSD and trauma in people who have perpetrated domestic violence may help them identify key triggers and develop the coping skills to respond to stress in healthier ways instead of violence.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217179/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Laura Voith receives funding from the National Institutes of Health; Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development; the U.S. Department for Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families; and Victims of Crime Acts (VOCA), Office for Victims of Crime. </span></em></p>Childhood adversity can put people at risk of perpetrating domestic violence in the future. Having a supportive social network and learning ways to regulate the stress response, however, can help.Laura Voith, Associate Professor of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2184212023-12-18T22:29:42Z2023-12-18T22:29:42ZHow technology can help victims of intimate partner violence<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565862/original/file-20231214-19-xsrof1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=19%2C38%2C4262%2C2805&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Technology is being used to help survivors by connecting them with resources, services and supports</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/how-technology-can-help-victims-of-intimate-partner-violence" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Intimate partner violence is a major public health concern. According to Statistics Canada, in 2018, 44 per cent of women <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/210426/dq210426b-eng.htm">experienced some form of intimate partner violence in their lifetime</a>. Rates of intimate partner violence are not only alarmingly high, but steadily increasing. <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/231121/dq231121b-eng.htm">In 2022, there were 117,093 victims of police-reported intimate partner violence in Canada</a>. This marked a 19 per cent increase since 2014.</p>
<p>Violence in intimate relationships can take many forms, including physical, sexual, emotional or financial abuse and coercive control. And intimate partner violence increases during emergencies such as pandemics, natural disasters and even economic downturns. </p>
<p>During the COVID-19 pandemic, federal consultations with provinces and territories found that <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/domestic-violence-rates-rising-due-to-covid19-1.5545851">intimate partner violence rose by 20 to 30 per cent in certain regions of Canada</a>. Rising rates of intimate partner violence worldwide at this time were labelled as <a href="https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/in-focus/in-focus-gender-equality-in-covid-19-response/violence-against-women-during-covid-19">“the shadow pandemic”</a> by the United Nations.</p>
<p>These increases in intimate partner violence have highlighted the need for creative and innovative ways of addressing the issue, particularly during emergencies. As part of <a href="https://www.umanitoba.ca/sites/resolve/files/2023-11/COVID-19%20IPV%20Final%20Report%20November%202023.pdf">our research</a> on intimate partner violence during the COVID-19 pandemic in Manitoba, we examined how technology is creatively being used to help survivors of intimate partner violence.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565599/original/file-20231213-17-jjbmj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=33%2C6%2C4459%2C2984&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Silhouette of a woman standing alone in a dark room." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565599/original/file-20231213-17-jjbmj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=33%2C6%2C4459%2C2984&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565599/original/file-20231213-17-jjbmj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565599/original/file-20231213-17-jjbmj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565599/original/file-20231213-17-jjbmj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565599/original/file-20231213-17-jjbmj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565599/original/file-20231213-17-jjbmj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565599/original/file-20231213-17-jjbmj4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rates of intimate partner violence are not only alarmingly high, but steadily increasing.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Technology and intimate partner violence</h2>
<p>Discussions about intimate partner violence and technology often focus on the ways abusers misuse technology to harm their intimate partners. This type of violence, known as <a href="https://www.umanitoba.ca/sites/resolve/files/2022-04/tech-facilitated-violence-research-brief-14-en.pdf">technology-facilitated violence</a>, includes sending abusive or threatening text messages, monitoring an intimate partner through tracking systems or spyware and controlling an intimate partner’s access to technology. </p>
<p>Technology can pose undeniable harms to survivors of intimate partner violence. However, it is also being used to help survivors by connecting them with resources, services and supports. We specifically saw technology be used in creative ways during the COVID-19 pandemic in place of in-person services.</p>
<p>Participants in our research project noted an increase in online services for survivors of intimate partner violence, including online counselling, safety planning, support groups and text or chat-based crisis lines. The easy access these services provide reduced certain barriers that came with in-person services such as transportation or having to find child care.</p>
<p>Other technology-based initiatives have gained recognition, such as online awareness campaigns. The award-winning <a href="https://canadianwomen.org/signal-for-help/">Signal for Help</a> campaign was launched in April 2020 in a response to increases in both gender-based violence and the use of video calls during the pandemic. The campaign featured a one-handed gesture that survivors of violence could use on video calls to signal that they need help.</p>
<p>Several apps have also been developed to help keep survivors safe. The <a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/myplan-safety-app/id1563802534">myPlan Safety App</a> features assessments and strategies for safety planning, online privacy and finding resources in a user’s local area. </p>
<p>Researchers have been exploring <a href="https://data.berkeley.edu/news/expert-shares-how-ai-could-help-doctors-treat-domestic-violence-victims">the potential of using artificial intelligence to help doctors care for and support survivors of intimate partner violence</a>.</p>
<p>Large-scale partnerships with technology companies during the pandemic showed increasing potential for reaching survivors of intimate partner violence at home. <a href="https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2020/6/news-tech-giants-provide-life-saving-information-during-covid-19">UN Women partnered with tech companies</a> in the United States to distribute information about services and resources for intimate partner violence survivors. <a href="https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/snapchat-announces-new-resources-to-assist-users-dealing-with-domestic-viol/577725/">The National Network to End Domestic Violence and Snapchat</a> also announced a partnership to provide intimate partner violence resources for users through searches of related terms.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565602/original/file-20231213-17-fk94wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman with a sad expression sits on the edge of a bed. A man sits on the other end of the bed behind her." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565602/original/file-20231213-17-fk94wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/565602/original/file-20231213-17-fk94wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565602/original/file-20231213-17-fk94wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565602/original/file-20231213-17-fk94wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565602/original/file-20231213-17-fk94wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565602/original/file-20231213-17-fk94wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/565602/original/file-20231213-17-fk94wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Online services and apps can provide victims of intimate partner violence with quick, accessible support and advice.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Barriers to online services</h2>
<p>The use of technology does not come without challenges. For instance, some of our research participants told us it was difficult to navigate online services. This was particularly apparent for those who had limited experience with technology. Others also noted that it could be hard to find privacy to access online services at home.</p>
<p>Additionally, some participants did not have access to the internet or technology needed to access online services, like a laptop or smartphone. This was common among <a href="https://gbvlearningnetwork.ca/our-work/issuebased_newsletters/issue-35/index.html">those living in rural, remote or northern areas of Canada</a>. Those who did have access to internet and technology in these areas noted that their internet connection or cellular service was often unreliable.</p>
<p>As technology in the area advances, it is important to identify and address social, economic and geographical barriers that can prevent survivors of intimate partner violence from utilizing online services. This is particularly important for survivors with limited online access, such as low-income, older adults or those living in rural areas.</p>
<p>Despite these challenges, the use of technology shows great potential for helping survivors of intimate partner violence, both during and after emergencies. Online service provision was noted as particularly beneficial for younger generations, who experience <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/231121/dq231121b-eng.htm">especially high rates of violence</a>. Continuing to invest in creative and innovative ways of meeting the complex needs of survivors provides promising practices for addressing intimate partner violence now, and into the future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/218421/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kendra Nixon receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and research support from community partner, the Family Violence Prevention Program (Government of Manitoba). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ashley Haller receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and research support from community partner, the Family Violence Prevention Program (Government of Manitoba). </span></em></p>Increases in intimate partner violence have highlighted the need for creative and innovative ways of addressing the issue, particularly during emergencies.Kendra Nixon, Professor, Faculty of Social Work & Director, RESOLVE (Research and Education for Solutions to Violence and Abuse), University of ManitobaAshley Haller, Research Technician at RESOLVE (Research and Education for Solutions to Violence and Abuse), University of ManitobaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2176902023-12-13T19:04:12Z2023-12-13T19:04:12ZWe’re all responsible for preventing domestic violence – and men play a crucial role. Tony Birch’s new novel makes the case<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564769/original/file-20231211-19-g71vxw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=6%2C0%2C4320%2C2880&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">RDNE Stock Project/Pexels</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>One of the most memorable tales from Tony Birch’s 2006 debut collection, <a href="https://scribepublications.com.au/books-authors/books/shadowboxing-9781921640155">Shadowboxing</a>, is The Butcher’s Wife. </p>
<p>In this short story, the titular wife sensationally murders and dismembers her husband after he beats her in full view of everyone in the street. The physical distress of regular beatings is almost to be taken for granted in Birch’s rendition of 1960s Fitzroy. But public humiliation pushes the butcher’s wife past breaking point – and finally demands retaliation.</p>
<p>Birch turns an unsparing eye on domestic violence again in his latest novel, <a href="https://www.uqp.com.au/books/women-children">Women and Children</a>, this time shining a spotlight on the societal conditions that enable abusers and entrap women in abusive relationships.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Review: Women and Children by Tony Birch (UQP)</em></p>
<hr>
<h2>Hypermasculine cowardice</h2>
<p>Our introduction to the world of Women and Children comes via 11-year-old Joe Cluny, an inquisitive boy who frequently draws the ire of the nuns at his Catholic school. Joe’s inability to stay out of trouble makes him a strong point of contrast to his older sister, Ruby, who is such an exemplary model of student behaviour that she earns a farm-stay holiday as a reward. </p>
<p>Back in Fitzroy, the nuns’ enthusiasm for corporal punishment seems based on the rationale that misdeeds should be punished by physical blows. Joe is forced to question this moral logic when his aunt Oona shows up at their place one evening with swollen eyes and bruises across her body. </p>
<p>Joe’s mother, Marion, implicitly understands “Oona wouldn’t have turned up at her house that night unless she feared for her safety”. The Cluny family grows increasingly desperate as it becomes clear that without intervention, the escalating violence of Oona’s partner, Ray, can only result in her death. </p>
<p>Women are regarded as the weaker sex in this society and Birch’s emphasis is on the cowardice of a hypermasculine culture that victimises women rather than protects them. </p>
<p>The Cluny sisters never doubt they are on their own: Marion raises two children without help from her shady ex-husband and Oona finds herself rendered a human punching-bag with no recourse. Oona holds no illusions that assistance will be forthcoming – not from neighbours, nor the church, nor society as a whole. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564748/original/file-20231211-19-8c9sz2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564748/original/file-20231211-19-8c9sz2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564748/original/file-20231211-19-8c9sz2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564748/original/file-20231211-19-8c9sz2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564748/original/file-20231211-19-8c9sz2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=407&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564748/original/file-20231211-19-8c9sz2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564748/original/file-20231211-19-8c9sz2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564748/original/file-20231211-19-8c9sz2.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=512&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Women and Children is set in Fitzroy (pictured), where Tony Birch grew up.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">F. Oswald Barnett Collection State Library of Victoria</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>When the butcher of The Butcher’s Wife chases his wife out into the street, the neighbours hurriedly retreat into their houses to preserve a semblance of privacy. </p>
<p>In Women and Children, people similarly avert their gaze from Oona’s injuries as a sign of respect. Oona herself is reluctant to talk to Marion about her injuries, as to do so would be an admission of personal failure. The shame of being beaten both prevents Oona from seeking help and inhibits people from offering help. </p>
<p>Birch deliberately pierces the tight circle normally drawn around matters of the domestic sphere. By breaking the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/omerta-Mafia-code-of-honor">omerta</a> around domestic violence, he suggests staying silent makes people complicit in the cruelty enacted against some of the most vulnerable people in society.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-book-that-changed-me-im-a-historian-but-tony-birchs-poetry-opened-my-eyes-to-confronting-truths-about-the-past-177320">The book that changed me: I'm a historian but Tony Birch's poetry opened my eyes to confronting truths about the past</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>‘You tell police nothing’</h2>
<p>Early on, Joe’s grandfather, Charlie, tells him a parable about a talking dog falsely accused of biting a man. Even though the dog can talk and would be able to give the police an exact description of the animal who was responsible, he stays silent. As a result, the police incarcerate him and eventually, put him down. </p>
<p>The moral of the story, as Charlie emphasises to Joe, is that the dog stays silent: “Because he knew, as everyone in the neighbourhood knows, human and animal both, that you tell police nothing. Not a word”. </p>
<p>This tightly knit community is bound together by its code of silence, a practice that fosters trust and guarantees a certain measure of autonomy in a hostile environment. Yet the silence of the streets also erects barriers that keep Oona dependent on her partner, Ray. She goes back to him, as women in abusive relationships often do, because she cannot see any pathway of escape.</p>
<p>Joe’s grandfather, Charlie, functions as an important counterpart to the women and children of the novel. Charlie has done his best to break the cycle of violence he grew up with and is, by all accounts, a gentle man. Having been a street-sweeper his entire life, he finds joy in salvaging items and provides a loving anchor of stability for his grandson. He retains a playful sensibility well into retirement, at one point even having a go on a swing in a deserted playground.</p>
<p>His ability to hold onto a memory of innocence effectively prevents Charlie from crossing over the threshold of violence that inevitably passes as a mark of manhood. Despite his best efforts to disentangle ideas of masculinity resolutely tied to aggression, at one point all Charlie can say to Marion is: “Men. We’re not much good.” And it is significant that Charlie’s personal refusal of violence is not enough to keep his daughters or grandchildren safe from the brutality of other men.</p>
<h2>No nostalgia</h2>
<p>Tony Birch has returned in his writing, time and again, to the slums of Fitzroy, where he grew up in the 1960s. There is a tendency to remember the 1960s as an exuberant time of social change. It was <a href="https://silo.tips/download/the-1960s-in-australia">a tumultuous decade</a>, where the rise of second-wave feminism and landmark progress made by Aboriginal activists arguably <a href="https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/the-dream-decade-that-produced-modern-australia-20211021-p591ul">gave birth</a> to the modern Australian nation. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564753/original/file-20231211-21-u8lqja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564753/original/file-20231211-21-u8lqja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/564753/original/file-20231211-21-u8lqja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=917&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564753/original/file-20231211-21-u8lqja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=917&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564753/original/file-20231211-21-u8lqja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=917&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564753/original/file-20231211-21-u8lqja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1152&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564753/original/file-20231211-21-u8lqja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1152&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/564753/original/file-20231211-21-u8lqja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1152&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<p>However, the types of stories Birch tells make it clear that the impulse to return does not stem from any nostalgia for the Australia of his childhood. It was only in 1965 that <a href="https://www.vwt.org.au/gender-equality-timeline-australia/">women won the right</a> to drink in public bars, and in 1966 that they were <a href="https://www.vwt.org.au/gender-equality-timeline-australia/">no longer made</a> to give up their jobs in the Commonwealth public service on getting married. (The right to equal pay came even later, in 1972.) </p>
<p>By the same token, it wasn’t until 1962 that all Aboriginal Australians <a href="https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/indigenous-australians-right-to-vote">had the right to vote in federal elections</a> – and Queensland became the last state extend to voting rights to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the middle of the decade, in 1965.</p>
<p>At a time when Aboriginal communities are demonised for having <a href="https://action.ourwatch.org.au/resource/challenging-misconceptions-about-violence-against-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-women/">a culture of violence</a> and specifically targeted for <a href="https://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/journals/index.php/csrj/article/view/2037">state intervention</a>, Birch’s carefully observed domestic scenes remind us of the constrained conditions women across Australia once operated within. </p>
<p>Misogyny and domestic violence are distasteful elements of the broader Australian culture that we would, by and large, prefer not to talk about.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/damned-whores-and-gods-police-is-still-relevant-to-australia-40-years-on-mores-the-pity-47753">Damned Whores and God’s Police is still relevant to Australia 40 years on – more's the pity</a>
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</p>
<hr>
<h2>A collective duty to act</h2>
<p>Towards the end of Birch’s novel, the women are compelled to seize control of their own fates. Marion’s daughter, Ruby, returns from her farm-stay equipped with new skills to defend herself (and her younger brother Joe) from the bullying of local boys. </p>
<p>Her fearlessness and defiant nature seem to anticipate the wave of feminism that would seize hold of <a href="http://www.auswhn.org.au/blog/writing-feminist-history-1970s/">Australia in the 1970s</a> – and the way boundaries between the private and public sphere would eventually collapse. Marion finally takes action to save her sister when no man seems willing to defend her. </p>
<p>Although these climactic moments involve women standing up to the bullying and intimidation of men, Birch does not allow us to forget the crucial role men play in the advance of feminism. Marion is only at liberty to deal with Ray because her caregiving duties have been taken over by Charlie. Having Joe out of the house and shielded from scenes of assault is an important step in breaking a cycle of normalised male violence. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.smh.com.au/culture/books/the-older-generation-need-to-take-a-step-back-20231109-p5eiq9.html">Elsewhere, Birch has said</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>We use that term (domestic violence) […] because it’s a crime committed overwhelmingly by men against women and children. Some of those children are male children.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Charlie’s willingness to provide safety and shelter to his grandson points the way forward to a world where caring for others is no longer considered a gender-specific role, but widespread and shared equally across the community. On this matter, Birch is unequivocal: when everyone knows someone is in trouble, there is a collective duty to do something about it.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217690/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lynda Ng has previously received funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>In Women and Children, Tony Birch is unequivocal about domestic violence: when everyone knows someone is in trouble, there is a collective duty to do something about it.Lynda Ng, Lecturer in World Literature (including Australian literature), The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2150702023-12-07T23:43:16Z2023-12-07T23:43:16ZAs the temperature rises, so do rates of domestic violence<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557389/original/file-20231103-17-6s620e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C8%2C5982%2C3979&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/heat-wave-extreme-sun-sky-background-2313962169">DStockgraphy/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Large <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/dec/06/australia-heatwave-weather-temperatures-nsw-wa-qld-sa-nt">parts of Australia</a> are currently in the grip of a heatwave, and climate change means we’re in for more <a href="https://www.climatechange.environment.nsw.gov.au/impacts-climate-change/weather-and-oceans/heatwaves">frequent and intense heat events</a> into the future.</p>
<p>We know extreme heat can pose <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/climate-change-heat-and-health">health risks</a>, especially for vulnerable groups. But increasingly, research is highlighting a relationship between <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1235367">hot temperatures and violence</a>. </p>
<p>Our team analysed <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/12265934.2023.2209544">close to one million</a> reported incidents of domestic, non-domestic and sexual assaults over a 13 year period (2006-2018) in New South Wales. We examined trends related to season, temperature, and where the incidents occurred (inside or outside).</p>
<p>We found violence increased with warmer weather. But the effect of heat was greater on domestic violence than other types of violent crime. The reasons, and solutions, are complex. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/car-accidents-drownings-violence-hotter-temperatures-will-mean-more-deaths-from-injury-129628">Car accidents, drownings, violence: hotter temperatures will mean more deaths from injury</a>
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</p>
<hr>
<h2>Hot weather, hot tempers</h2>
<p>Rates of assault were higher in summer than in winter in most areas, except for a few places with snow tourism. Overall, domestic, non-domestic and sexual violence rose as temperatures increased from cool to warm. </p>
<p>On extreme heat days, non-domestic assaults outdoors declined, potentially because people move indoors seeking respite from the heat. However, domestic violence rates continued to increase with temperature, both inside and outside. </p>
<p>Sexual assaults both indoors and outdoors also increased in warm temperatures, but declined or plateaued in hot weather. </p>
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<h2>Why are violence and hot weather linked?</h2>
<p>You’ve probably experienced the uncomfortable effects of hot weather, such as sweating, dehydration, lethargy and restless sleep. These effects can make people feel irritated, which may increase the likelihood of <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1976-22279-001">acting more aggressively</a>.</p>
<p>Also, behavioural changes associated with hot weather may create more opportunities and motivation to act aggressively. For example, on warm and longer summer days we may be more likely to go out and socialise or <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8747501/">drink more alcohol</a>. </p>
<p>In extreme heat, we may retreat inside if we can, where there’s respite from the sun and potentially air conditioning. Given this, we might expect to see less of an association between violence and hot weather indoors. But our research found this wasn’t generally the case.</p>
<p>Domestic violence is more often experienced by women, at the hands of a family member or partner who they <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/domestic-violence/family-domestic-and-sexual-violence#risk">live with</a>. During extreme heat, offenders and victims may not have practical ways to avoid the heat. The house may remain hot without <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4602.0.55.001">access to air conditioning</a>, or it may be <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1071/HE11413">too expensive to run</a>. </p>
<p>Violence is also often said to occur “<a href="https://hrcak.srce.hr/237620">behind closed doors</a>”, where there are fewer witnesses to intervene, and potentially more social stressors. As an example, COVID lockdowns were often associated with higher rates of <a href="https://www.aic.gov.au/publications/special/special-11">intimate partner abuse</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman looking out a window." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557391/original/file-20231103-17-5qmz9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557391/original/file-20231103-17-5qmz9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557391/original/file-20231103-17-5qmz9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557391/original/file-20231103-17-5qmz9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=427&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557391/original/file-20231103-17-5qmz9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557391/original/file-20231103-17-5qmz9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557391/original/file-20231103-17-5qmz9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=537&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Domestic violence rose in hotter weather.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/silhouette-woman-trapped-home-violent-man-1727153176">Yannick Martinez/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>One limitation of our study is that we used outdoor ambient air temperature to represent heat exposure, regardless of where the crime occurred. However, heat will vary significantly by location on a given day. For example, an indoor location like a bakery or factory could be hotter than outside at a shady park, and may remain hot regardless of the weather. </p>
<h2>What about online?</h2>
<p>Our team was interested to know whether temperature-related aggression can be seen outside of crime statistics, so we considered how anger is expressed on Twitter (now known as X). </p>
<p>In a previous study, we analysed emotions captured from more than 74 million tweets, looking for words or phrases that expressed <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0013916520937455">rage or anger</a>. </p>
<p>We found that generally the number of angry tweets (and in fact, tweets in general) decreased as temperatures moved from cool to warm. This may be partly because we get off our screens and enjoy the weather.</p>
<p>However, in very hot weather that trend plateaued or even reversed, suggesting angry tweets may rise in extreme heat. Similarly, studies have found <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(22)00173-5/fulltext">online hate speech</a> increases in extreme heat.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A man outdoors on his smartphone." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557392/original/file-20231103-15-alzfdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557392/original/file-20231103-15-alzfdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557392/original/file-20231103-15-alzfdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557392/original/file-20231103-15-alzfdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557392/original/file-20231103-15-alzfdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557392/original/file-20231103-15-alzfdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557392/original/file-20231103-15-alzfdx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Hotter temperatures are also associated with aggression online.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/middle-age-greyhaired-man-using-smartphone-1828847783">Krakenimages.com/Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<h2>Reducing inequalities</h2>
<p>Neither heat nor violence affect everyone equally. Both are influenced by social determinants of health.</p>
<p>Domestic violence is more likely to occur in <a href="https://nij.ojp.gov/library/publications/when-violence-hits-home-how-economics-and-neighborhood-play-role-research">disadvantaged areas</a>. Likewise, lower socioeconomic populations tend to have <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ab3b99/meta">higher heat exposure</a>. This may be due to the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32461547/">urban heat island effect</a> (where a city experiences warmer temperatures than surrounding rural areas), less access to air conditioning or private cars, or working outdoors. </p>
<p>While the drivers behind temperature-related violence are complex, there are things we can do. First, we need to address the big issues <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2784629/">relating to domestic violence</a> such as cultural norms, <a href="https://www.respect.gov.au/">attitudes</a> and legal provisions.</p>
<p>In heatwaves, we can provide inexpensive and accessible cool areas for those who need them. So-called “<a href="https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/informit.20220606068145">heat refuges</a>” offer a safe space for people to linger, like at a library, swimming pool or community centre, and provide air conditioning, cold water and other facilities. </p>
<p>Increasing the amount of green space in cities could have a dual benefit. More urban greening is associated with <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969717301754">lower urban heat island effect</a>, and studies have also shown a link between more green space and <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/24/5119">less violent crime</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/extreme-weather-is-landing-more-australians-in-hospital-and-heat-is-the-biggest-culprit-216440">Extreme weather is landing more Australians in hospital – and heat is the biggest culprit</a>
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</p>
<hr>
<p>Our findings add to growing evidence that shows <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/13/7855">extreme weather events</a> are <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/abb266;">associated with</a> a range of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412021001586">poor health</a> and <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11069-020-03887-z">social outcomes</a>.</p>
<p>The effects of extreme weather in our communities demands more and stronger action on climate change.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>The National Sexual Assault, Family and Domestic Violence Counselling Line – 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for any Australian who has experienced, or is at risk of, family and domestic violence and/or sexual assault. You can also text the service on 0458 737 732.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/215070/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paul Beggs is affiliated with the Lancet Countdown.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Heather R. Stevens and Petra Graham do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Hot temperatures seem to lead to aggression, both in real life and online.Heather R. Stevens, Researcher - Environmental Science, Macquarie UniversityPaul Beggs, Associate Professor and Environmental Health Scientist, Macquarie UniversityPetra Graham, Associate Professor, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2166302023-12-03T23:10:52Z2023-12-03T23:10:52ZFor domestic violence victim-survivors, a data or privacy breach can be extraordinarily dangerous<p>A suite of recent cybersecurity data breaches highlight an urgent need to overhaul how companies and government agencies handle our data. But these incidents pose particular risks to victim-survivors of domestic violence.</p>
<p>In fact, authorities across Australia and the United Kingdom are raising concerns about how privacy breaches have endangered these customers.</p>
<p>The onus is on service providers – such as utilities, telcos, internet companies and government agencies – to ensure they don’t risk the safety of their most vulnerable customers by being careless with their data. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-500-million-ato-fraud-highlights-flaws-in-the-mygov-id-system-heres-how-to-keep-your-data-safe-210459">The $500 million ATO fraud highlights flaws in the myGov ID system. Here's how to keep your data safe</a>
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<hr>
<h2>A suite of incidents</h2>
<p>Earlier this year, the UK Information Commissioner reported it had <a href="https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/media-centre/news-and-blogs/2023/09/data-breaches-put-domestic-abuse-victims-lives-at-risk-uk-information-commissioner-warns/">reprimanded</a> seven organisations since June 2022 for privacy breaches affecting victims of domestic abuse.</p>
<p>These included organisations revealing the safe addresses of the victims to their alleged abuser. In one case, a family had to be moved immediately to emergency accommodation. </p>
<p>In another case, an organisation disclosed the home address of two children to their birth father (who was in prison for raping their mother).</p>
<p>The UK Information Commissioner has called for better training and processes. This includes regular verification of contact information and securing data against unauthorised access. </p>
<p>In 2021, the Australian Information Commissioner and Privacy Commissioner <a href="https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/cth/AICmr/2021/12.html">took action against Services Australia</a> for disclosing a victim-survivor’s new address to her former partner. </p>
<p>The commissioner ordered a written apology and a A$19,980 compensation payment. It also ordered an independent audit of how Services Australia updates contact details for separating couples with shared records.</p>
<p>An <a href="https://www.oaic.gov.au/about-the-OAIC/our-corporate-information/oaic-annual-reports/annual-report-201819/part-2-performance">earlier case</a> involved a telecommunications company and the publisher of a public directory. </p>
<p>The commissioner ordered them each to pay $20,000 to a victim of domestic violence whose details were made public, which jeopardised her safety. </p>
<p>More recently, the Energy and Water Ombudsman Victoria reported a <a href="https://www.ewov.com.au/reports/annual-report-2023">case</a> where an electricity provider inadvertently provided a woman’s new address to her ex-partner. The woman had to buy security cameras for protection. The company has since revised its procedures.</p>
<p>The Energy and Water Ombudsman Victoria has also <a href="https://www.ewov.com.au/reports/annual-report-2023">reviewed complaints</a> received in 2022-23 related to domestic violence. These include failing to flag accounts of victims who disclosed abuse, as well as potentially unsafe consumer automation and data governance processes.</p>
<p>The Victorian Essential Services Commission <a href="https://www.esc.vic.gov.au/water/sector-performance-and-reporting/compliance-and-enforcement-water-sector/south-east-water-corporation-enforceable-undertaking-2023">accepted a court-enforceable undertaking</a> from a water company that it would improve processes after allegations its actions put customers affected by family violence at risk.</p>
<p>The commission found the company failed to adequately protect the personal information of two separate customers in 2021 and 2022, by sending correspondence with their personal information to the wrong addresses. </p>
<p>In both cases, the customer had not disclosed their experience of domestic violence. Nevertheless, the regulator noted these “erroneous information disclosures put these customers at risk of harm”.</p>
<p>Australia’s Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman received about <a href="https://www.tio.com.au/news/better-consumer-protection-rules-are-needed-telco-consumers-suffering-family-violence">300 complaints</a> involving domestic violence in 2022-23, with almost two-thirds relating to mobile phones.</p>
<p>Complaints included instances of telcos disclosing the addresses of victim-survivors to perpetrators or of frontline staff not believing victim-survivors. There were also cases of telcos insisting a consumer experiencing family violence contact the perpetrator of family violence. The report noted:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>For example, one person was asked by her telco to bring her abusive ex-partner into a store to change her number to her new account. </p>
<p>We’ve also had complaints about telcos disconnecting the services of a consumer experiencing family violence – sometimes at the request of the account holder who is the perpetrator of the violence – despite access to those services being critical to the consumer staying safe.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The Australian Financial Complaints Authority <a href="https://www.afca.org.au/news/information-for-consumer-advocates/supporting-people-impacted-by-domestic-violence">resolved more than 500 complaints</a> from people experiencing domestic and family violence in 2021-22, including those related to privacy breaches.</p>
<h2>Change is slowly under way</h2>
<p>In May, <a href="https://www.aemc.gov.au/sites/default/files/2022-09/RRC0042%20-%20Protecting%20customers%20affected%20by%20family%20violence%20-%20Final%20Determination_clean.pdf">new national rules</a> came into force to provide better protection and support to energy customers experiencing domestic violence.</p>
<p>These rules mandate retailers prioritise customer safety and protect their personal information. This includes account security measures to prevent perpetrators from accessing victim-survivors’ sensitive data. </p>
<p>They also prohibit the disclosure of information without consent. In issuing its rules, the Australian Energy Markets Commission noted the heightened risk of partner homicides following separations. </p>
<p>The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman has called for <a href="https://www.tio.com.au/news/better-consumer-protection-rules-are-needed-telco-consumers-suffering-family-violence">mandatory, uniform and enforceable rules</a>. The current voluntary industry code and guidelines fall short in protecting phone and internet customers experiencing domestic violence. </p>
<p>New rules should include training, policies and recognition of violence as a cause of payment difficulties. They should also factor in how service suspension or disconnection affects victim-survivors.</p>
<p>The Australian Information and Privacy Commissioner <a href="https://www.oaic.gov.au/newsroom/communications-law-bulletin-interview-with-commissioner-falk">said</a> last year:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Sadly, we continue to receive cases of improper disclosure of personal information off line by businesses to ex partners who target women in family disputes and domestic violence. All of these issues reinforce the need for privacy by design.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In its response to a <a href="https://www.ag.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-09/government-response-privacy-act-review-report.PDF">review of the Privacy Act</a>, the government has agreed the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner should help develop guidance to reduce risk to customers. </p>
<p>We must work harder to ensure data and privacy breaches do not leave victim-survivors of domestic violence at greater risk from perpetrators.</p>
<p><em>The National Sexual Assault, Family and Domestic Violence Counselling Line – 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for any Australian who has experienced, or is at risk of, family and domestic violence and/or sexual assault.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216630/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Catherine Fitzpatrick is the author of Designed to Disrupt for the Centre for Women's Economic Safety, which aims to improve financial safety in financial and essential services through reimagined product design. She is a former bank executive with roles managing customer complaints, domestic violence support and government relations. She has previously been engaged as a speaker for the Essential Services Commission and as a consultant to a Victoria water company.</span></em></p>Authorities across Australia and the UK are sounding the alarm about how data breaches have endangered domestic violence victim-survivors.Catherine Fitzpatrick, Adjunct Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2183552023-11-24T03:40:25Z2023-11-24T03:40:25Z7 charts on family, domestic and sexual violence in Australia<p>With so much data released about family, domestic and sexual violence, it can be difficult to see how it all fits together. </p>
<p>The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) has attempted to do this with a <a href="https://aihw.gov.au/family-domestic-and-sexual-violence">new website</a> that tells the story of violence using numbers, looking at how often it happens, to whom and when. </p>
<p>Here are seven charts that show the prevalence of various forms of interpersonal violence, across life.</p>
<h2>1. Sexual violence risk varies (in ways you might not expect)</h2>
<p>One in five women and one in 16 men have experienced sexual violence since the age of 15.</p>
<p>The likelihood of experiencing sexual violence differs by age as well as gender.</p>
<p><iframe id="2wLeq" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/2wLeq/2/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>This chart uses data about recorded crimes. Of course, we know many sexual crimes in childhood and adulthood are never discovered or reported. For each age group, and for both females and males, the recorded crime rate for sexual victimisation has steadily risen from 2010 to 2022. But the rate for girls and boys is substantially higher than for women and men.</p>
<h2>2. What kinds of harm come to the attention of child protection services?</h2>
<p>In cases reported to a statutory child protection service, a “substantiation” is the conclusion, following an investigation, that there was reasonable cause to believe that a child had been, was being, or was likely to be, abused, neglected or otherwise harmed. For both boys and girls, more than half of these cases are about harm from emotional abuse. This refers to parental behaviour, repeated over time, that conveys to a child that they are worthless, unloved or unwanted.</p>
<p><iframe id="zuhJi" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/zuhJi/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Witnessing family and domestic violence is not monitored separately as a type of harm in any <a href="https://aifs.gov.au/resources/policy-and-practice-papers/what-child-abuse-and-neglect">state or territory child protection statistics</a>. Therefore it is not one of the primary harm types recorded in the data shown in this graph. Yet in <a href="https://www.acms.au">our study</a>, my colleagues and I found it was the most frequently experienced form of maltreatment in childhood – 39.6% of adults were exposed to domestic violence as children. </p>
<h2>3. Lifetime exposure to violence</h2>
<p>One in three men experienced violence from a stranger, but for women, they were much more likely to experience violence from those they knew.</p>
<p><iframe id="j4lw5" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/j4lw5/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>One in six women (and one in 13 men) have experienced domestic violence in the form of economic abuse by a current or previous cohabiting partner since the age of 15. </p>
<h2>4. Time is of the essence</h2>
<p>Not only does the risk of experiencing violence change across life, but temporal factors also play a role. Towards the end of the year, when there are festivities and more opportunities for alcohol misuse, the risks are greater.</p>
<p><iframe id="ynq2C" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/ynq2C/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>5. Men’s (and boys’) violence towards women and girls</h2>
<p>Perpetrators of violence are more likely to be known to the victim than be a stranger. Some forms of violence, particularly sexual violence, are more likely to be experienced by girls and women. Boys and men are more likely to use violence, again particularly for sexual violence.</p>
<p>One in six women (and one in 18 men) have experienced physical or sexual violence by a current or previous cohabiting partner since the age of 15. </p>
<p><iframe id="DipvY" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/DipvY/2/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>One of the types of violence is also emotional. One in four women (and one in seven men) have experienced emotional abuse by <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/family-domestic-and-sexual-violence/understanding-fdsv/who-uses-violence">a current or previous cohabiting</a> partner since the age of 15.</p>
<h2>6. Sexual harassment: who does it and who is subjected to it?</h2>
<p>Women are much more likely to be subjected to sexualised behaviours – by men – that are unwanted or make them feel uncomfortable. Overall, rates appear to have declined since 2005, when almost one in five women experienced harassment.</p>
<p><iframe id="8pPnI" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/8pPnI/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>7. Sexual victimisation rates have changed over time</h2>
<p>Crime data on sexual victimisation (sexual assaults recorded by police) from 2010 to 2022 suggests things have not been improving. Although there is variability between states, the biggest difference can be seen between women and men (women are at substantially higher risk of sexual victimisation).</p>
<p><iframe id="N0l0g" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/N0l0g/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>What’s missing?</h2>
<p>Often, people are exposed to multiple kinds of violence. In <a href="https://www.acms.au">our study</a>, we found almost 40% of the population had experienced more than one type of child abuse or neglect – including exposure to family or domestic violence as a child.</p>
<p>We also found this “multi-type maltreatment” was one of the <a href="https://www.acms.au/resources/the-prevalence-and-impact-of-child-maltreatment-in-australia-findings-from-the-australian-child-maltreatment-study-2023-brief-report/">strongest predictors</a> of experiencing mental illness and engaging in behaviours that put health at risk, like cannabis dependence in adulthood.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/major-study-reveals-two-thirds-of-people-who-suffer-childhood-maltreatment-suffer-more-than-one-kind-202033">Major study reveals two-thirds of people who suffer childhood maltreatment suffer more than one kind</a>
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<p>However, many of the sources of data the AIHW uses only look at one form of violence. So it is much harder to tell the story of how it relates to the impacts that might be observed. </p>
<p>We also can’t see data on children’s exposure to physical punishment in the home, despite Australia’s failure to meet its responsibility under the <a href="https://docstore.ohchr.org/SelfServices/FilesHandler.ashx?enc=6QkG1d%2FPPRiCAqhKb7yhsk5X2w65LgiRF%2FS3dwPS4NWFNCtCrUn3lRntjFl1P2gZpa035aKkorCHAPJx8bIZmDed5owOGcbWFeosUSgDTFKNqA7hBC3KiwAm8SBo665E">UN Convention on the Rights of the Child</a> to protect them from this form of violence.</p>
<p>The data curated on this new website can be used to identify where more services might be required to address the needs of victims of different kinds of violence, at different stages across life. It can also help drive a genuine strategy for <a href="https://www.napcan.org.au/national-summit-to-prevent-child-maltreatment/">prevention</a>. The strategy should look at the risk factors for each type of interpersonal violence, and those that are common across different types of violence. <a href="https://doi.org/10.5694/mja2.51868">Such risks include</a> parental mental illness, substance misuse, poverty and divorce.</p>
<p>And then we must invest in <a href="https://rdcu.be/cEvhu">evidence-based strategies</a> to alleviate the risk of growing up with, and being exposed in adulthood to family, domestic, and sexual violence.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/218355/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daryl Higgins receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the National Health and Medical Research Council, and a range of government departments and non-government child/family welfare agencies.</span></em></p>Key findings on victims and perpetrators of interpersonal violence have been brought together in a new website that seeks to combine over 30 sources of data across Australia.Daryl Higgins, Professor & Director, Institute of Child Protection Studies, Australian Catholic UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2117382023-11-23T04:23:48Z2023-11-23T04:23:48Z‘It cannot be normal that men hurt us women’: what we can learn from the inquest into 4 Aboriginal women’s deaths in the NT<p><em>Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names of deceased people. Some names have been changed to honour Sorry Business. This article also mentions violence against and killings of First Nations women.</em></p>
<hr>
<p>Kumanjayi Haywood.</p>
<p>Ngeygo Ragurrk.</p>
<p>Miss Yunupingu. </p>
<p>Kumarn Rubuntja.</p>
<p>These are the names of the four Aboriginal women at the centre of Australia’s largest and longest-running <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-08/domestic-violence-in-the-nt-coroner-explosion-inquest/103077118">coronial inquest</a> into women killed by their intimate male partners that adjourned on November 10. Over the past six months in the Northern Territory, Judge Elisabeth Armitage <a href="https://www.ourwatch.org.au/resource/coroners-inquest-into-the-deaths-of-four-aboriginal-women-is-a-wake-up-call-to-commit-to-stopping-violence-before-it-starts/">heard evidence</a> about the shocking circumstances surrounding each woman’s death.</p>
<p>Each of the women had experienced years of severe abuse from their male partners, some of whom had served lengthy jail terms, and some of whom had long histories of violence, sometimes against multiple partners.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-16/nt-dv-inquest-police-officer-apologises-for-bail-recommendation/102489068">Kumanjayi Haywood</a> died after her partner poured petrol under the door of the bathroom she was hiding in and set her alight. She sustained burns to 90% of her body. She was a loving mother.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-06-29/nt-domestic-violence-inquest-mindil-beach-darwin/102540052">Ngeygo Ragurrk</a> was killed by her partner on Darwin’s Mindil Beach after a brutal attack lasting several hours. She was a Warddeken ranger and is remembered as a loving aunty.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-15/miss-yunupingu-domestic-violence-inquest/102726622">Miss Yunupingu</a> endured over a decade of abuse by her partner, who ultimately ended her life by stabbing her three times in the chest. She was much loved by her family.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-25/nt-dv-inquest-kumarn-rubuntja-ejected-from-alice-springs-club/102772110">Kumarn Rubuntja</a> was killed after <a href="https://www.ntnews.com.au/truecrimeaustralia/police-courts-nt/central-australian-man-who-drove-over-partner-repeatedly-in-hospital-carpark-pleads-guilty-to-murder/news-story/d2664c3378b13973d73d70c95a6ca29e">her partner</a> deliberately hit her with his car, reversing over and hitting her several times. She was a well-known anti-violence advocate and beloved by her friends and family.</p>
<p>These women were failed repeatedly by the systems and institutions set up to protect them. They slipped through the gaping cracks in an overstretched and overburdened system. One of the women had called police 22 times. Another was herself arrested after calling police for help. The family of another was unaware of the exact nature and circumstances of her death and the sentence of her perpetrator because there were <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/oct/30/this-is-our-horror-nt-coroner-investigates-deaths-of-women-at-hands-of-their-partners">no interpreters</a> in court when he was sentenced.</p>
<p>The coroner dedicated time to hearing about the individual circumstances surrounding each women’s death, as well as two weeks for institutional responses.</p>
<p>I was called to give evidence in the inquest twice. The first time was to provide testimony in relation to Kumarn Rubuntja’s death, as she was my friend and colleague. I spoke about the <a href="https://www.ntnews.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=NTWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ntnews.com.au%2Ftruecrimeaustralia%2Fpolice-courts-nt%2Fnt-cop-zachary-rolfe-responses-to-domestic-violence-call-out-exposed-in-inquest%2Fnews-story%2Fd99f0074865d66a4769de26680306ac7&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium&offerset=nt_truecrime_premium">rates and drivers</a> of violence in the territory. </p>
<p>The second time was part of the institutional responses, where I gave expert evidence due to my research into violence against women in the territory. I presented evidence about the development of different initiatives to improve the response to domestic, family and sexual violence in the territory, such as <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07-11/domestic-violence-training-for-nt-police-revamped/101225002">improved training</a> for police. </p>
<p>I believe the inquest was extraordinarily important, but it was also immeasurably difficult and painful. It was hard for all of us who loved, knew and worked with these women. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1722808884052492539"}"></div></p>
<h2>Inquest findings</h2>
<p>Armitage, the judge, characterised extreme violence in the Northern Territory as an “<a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-16/nt-coroner-domestic-violence-epidemic-inquest-summary-evidence/103108464">epidemic</a>”, an “<a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-08/domestic-violence-in-the-nt-coroner-explosion-inquest/103077118">explosion</a>”, and a “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/oct/30/this-is-our-horror-nt-coroner-investigates-deaths-of-women-at-hands-of-their-partners">horror</a>”.</p>
<p>The inquest heard domestic violence has increased by 117% in the past ten years, and is projected to increase a <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-08/nt-domestic-violence-inquest-halfway-reveal-system-in-crisis/102569464">further 73%</a> in the next decade. As a result, police callout times to domestic violence incidents have more than doubled. </p>
<p>In the Northern Territory, domestic, family and sexual violence services are chronically under-funded and under-resourced. Women’s shelters from across the NT gave evidence that they had to turn women away because they did not have enough beds. Some were having to reduce staff pay due to lack of funding. Some had to rely on vacancies, while others were running their budgets in deficits. </p>
<p>However, the inquest also heard about several promising initiatives, including a co-response model for police and specialist services. But this initiative had only been given funding of $240,000 from the government. Queensland, by comparison, has funded its own co-response model with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/nov/11/northern-territory-coroner-brought-to-tears-by-testimony-as-she-adjourns-domestic-violence-inquest">$22 million</a>. </p>
<p>Another promising initiative is improved and specialist domestic, family and sexual violence (DFSV) <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-07-11/domestic-violence-training-for-nt-police-revamped/101225002">training for police</a> and health care workers. But the <a href="https://doyourpart.com.au/">Prevent.Assist.Respond.Training</a> program had only been funded to develop training, and there was no money for implementation or delivery. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/heres-some-context-missing-from-the-mparntwe-alice-springs-crime-wave-reporting-199481">Here's some context missing from the Mparntwe Alice Springs 'crime wave' reporting</a>
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</em>
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<hr>
<h2>A national crisis</h2>
<p>Through the inquest, the specialist domestic, family and sexual violence sector learned that the Northern Territory government had rejected its own working group’s recommendation for funding of <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-10/nt-coroner-domestic-violence-inquest-closes/103089156">$180 million over five years</a>, instead committing to only $20 million over two years. Professor Marcia Langton, in her testimony, labelled this decision “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/oct/31/gobsmacking-marcia-langton-criticises-nt-government-for-rejecting-plan-for-family-violence-funding-boost">gobsmacking</a>”.</p>
<p>Upon learning of the inadequate funding for essential services, the DFSV sector organised a “day of action” on September 26. <a href="https://www.ntnews.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=NTWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ntnews.com.au%2Fnews%2Fpolitics%2Fnt-domestic-violence-advocates-call-for-180m-in-funding%2Fnews-story%2F4e6971b3317a75b7564e16f20cb4e29f&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium">Hundreds of people</a> gathered across the territory, in regional centres and remote communities, to call on both the NT and federal government to commit to <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-26/nt-advocates-rally-for-domestic-violence-federal-funding/102901096">needs-based funding</a> for the territory.</p>
<p>The NT’s family violence sector called for:</p>
<ol>
<li> an immediate injection of a minimum additional $180 million over five years, per the government’s own recommendation</li>
<li> the immediate establishment and ongoing funding of a NT-specific domestic, family and sexual violence peak organisation</li>
<li> the allocation of 50% of new public housing to victim-survivors of domestic, family and sexual violence.</li>
</ol>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/49-women-have-been-killed-in-australia-so-far-in-2023-as-a-result-of-violence-are-we-actually-making-any-progress-217552">49 women have been killed in Australia so far in 2023 as a result of violence. Are we actually making any progress?</a>
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<h2>Action is needed before more women die</h2>
<p>Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has not yet responded to multiple requests from the Northern Territory DFSV sector to visit the territory to meet with the family violence sector and see the level of need firsthand. </p>
<p>Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth said the Albanese government had already funded the NT government for family and domestic violence services with <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-07/needs-based-domestic-violence-funding-appeal/103070406">$147 million over four years</a>. </p>
<p>But the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-10/domestic-violence-inquest-nt-leanne-liddle-urges-more-funding/103083146">breakdown</a> of this funding included many general services – several of which run no domestic violence programs and one that was not based in the NT. She also failed to include a single women’s shelter in the <a href="https://www.ntnews.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=NTWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ntnews.com.au%2Fnews%2Fnorthern-territory%2Ffeds-accuse-nt-govt-of-blameshifting-in-fight-against-domestic-violence%2Fnews-story%2F1453cebb9d594d49f967aeca2831fdd3&memtype=anonymous&mode=premium">territory</a>. </p>
<p>Recommendations will now be put to the coroner by counsel assisting and submissions will close in March. The coroner will then lay down her findings in November. </p>
<p>Kumanjayi Haywood, Ngeygo Ragurrk, Miss Yunupingu, Kumarn Rubuntja. These women rarely made the national news. The nation did not honour their lives or mourn them. Their lives did not spark marches or social media campaigns or speeches in parliament. Four more people <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-11/analysis-domestic-violence-in-the-northern-territory/103078538">have died</a> in what police believe are domestic violence incidents in the NT since the inquest began. </p>
<p>This inquest was an incredibly important opportunity to hear from the women’s friends and families, who recounted beautiful memories about them and told of their heartbreak. It’s important all of us hear the words of these grieving families – we need to do better. </p>
<p>As Ngeygo Ragurrk’s sister, Edna, said on the last day of the inquest: “It cannot be normal that men hurt us women. Everyone must do more from the start, not just after women get hurt or killed.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211738/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kumarn Rubuntja was a friend of mine and I worked alongside her for many years.
I work as the Family Violence Prevention Manager at the Tangentyere Council Aboriginal Corporation and Managing Director of Her Story Consulting. I was also called to give evidence in the inquest.</span></em></p>The landmark inquest is investigating how four women killed by their partners were failed by systems meant to protect them. How can we stop this from happening?Chay Brown, Research and Partnerships Manager, The Equality Institute, & Postdoctoral fellow, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2162822023-11-15T17:44:30Z2023-11-15T17:44:30ZHomeless mothers in England spend up to £300 per month on buses to get their children to school<p>When women with children are made homeless – usually by either rent arrears, after no-fault evictions or domestic violence – they are often moved into temporary accommodation. The latest figures from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness#statutory-homelessness-live-tables">reveal</a> there are presently 104,510 households and 131,000 children living in temporary accommodation in England. </p>
<p>Sometimes this lack of a permanent place to call home is not so temporary. In Greater Manchester, specifically, homeless families spend on average <a href="https://sharedhealthfoundation.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Homeless-Families-The-Gold-Standard.pdf">two years</a> in temporary accommodation. During that period, they can be moved multiple times, at very short notice and across boroughs. </p>
<p>For children experiencing homelessness, school is often seen as the <a href="https://assets.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/wpuploads/2019/08/cco-bleak-houses-report-august-2019.pdf">one steady, safe environment</a>. And yet, being moved to temporary accommodation can often cause extensive disruption to schooling too. In 2023, the homelessness charity, <a href="https://tfl.ams3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/media/documents/Still_Living_in_Limbo.pdf">Shelter</a>, surveyed 1,112 respondents living in temporary accommodation. It found that almost half (47%) of families surveyed with school-age children had needed to change their schools due to being moved far from their previous home. One in five (19%) children had to travel more than an hour to get to school. </p>
<p>Our <a href="https://sharedhealthfoundation.org.uk/publications/the-debt-trap-report/">new report</a>, published in collaboration with the <a href="https://sharedhealthfoundation.org.uk">Shared Health Foundation</a>, shows that some homeless families are spending up to one quarter of their monthly income – as much as £300 – on bus travel. Gaps in eligibility criteria – or the inability to complete applications – mean that people living in temporary accommodation are often unable to access financial support for what the UK government calls <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/home-to-school-travel-and-transport-guidance">“home-to-school travel”</a>. Free school bus passes for compulsory school-age children are one of the clearest examples of this. </p>
<h2>How homeless families rely on bus travel</h2>
<p>Nationally, free bus passes are available to both children eligible for free school meals and those whose families are in receipt of the maximum level of working tax credit. But this eligibility only extends to children attending their “nearest qualifying school”. Oldham council, for example, <a href="https://www.oldham.gov.uk/homepage/1407/mainstream_home_to_school_transport_and_college_transport_policy.html">defines</a> this as the nearest council-maintained school or educational establishment with places available, that caters to the age, ability, aptitude and any special educational needs of the child.</p>
<p>There are exemptions to this, mainly on the basis of children attending schools further away on religious grounds. These <a href="https://www.oldhamconnect.uk/Pages/Download/9b7ff1eb-28d7-4b1a-bc63-ca57f6d5441e/PageSectionDocuments">exemptions</a>, however, often do not apply to children who have been placed in temporary accommodation far from their schools. </p>
<p>In other words, the “nearest qualifying school” would be a school near to the child’s new temporary accommodation – to get the free school bus pass, the child would have to move to that school. If parents do not want to move children, out of concern that further disruption will be bad for them, the family – some of the country’s most vulnerable and indebted families – will have to pay large amounts of money for bus travel. </p>
<p>Between May 2022 and October 2023 we interviewed 13 women who all resided in Greater Manchester and had been made homeless with their children. They had lived in temporary accommodation and had experienced rental debt, council tax debt and other personal debts. </p>
<p>We also interviewed local frontline staff, councils, support workers and integrated service charities.</p>
<p>Our interviewees told us of the considerable logistical, financial and emotional burdens of maintaining stability in their children’s schooling. However, they all had little sense of how long they would be able to stay in their current temporary accommodation. </p>
<p>For homeless families, moving children to schools local to their current temporary accommodation is highly risky. They may only be in the area for a short period. </p>
<p>One woman we interviewed, Casho (not her real name) became homeless, with her three children, after experiencing domestic violence. Bus travel was crucial to ensuring her children stay in their existing schools and not miss out on education. But in order for each to reach their schools the family was forced to take multiple buses – 18 single bus journeys, daily. </p>
<p>Casho’s children were eligible for the free school bus passes. But to apply she needed to pay for passport photos and the wait between applying and receiving the pass could be weeks long. Casho did not have the money for passport photos so had not even been able to apply when we spoke with her.</p>
<p>For all the parents we interviewed, low income levels and debts owed meant that any additional payment – no matter how small – could be the difference between, say, getting the children to school, or being able to afford to put the heating on. </p>
<p>As Casho put it: “Sometimes food’s running out. But the bus, I need to buy a pass again.” Until she was able to sort out the free school bus passes, she was having to spend £280 per month on bus journeys: more than a quarter of her total monthly income on school transport. </p>
<p>Casho has started to bid for a permanent property. Ideally, this would be within walking distance of her children’s schools – though that is unlikely, given the extremely limited choice of social housing in the area. </p>
<p>No child should be expected to move schools simply because transport is unaffordable. And no borough in the country should be without formal provision for transport in place for those adults and children living in temporary accommodation. And yet, although <a href="https://consult.education.gov.uk/home-to-school-transport-and-admissions-team/home-to-school-travel-and-transport-statutory-guid/supporting_documents/Draft%20statutory%20guidance%20%20Home%20to%20school%20travel%20and%20transport%20for%20children%20of%20compulsory%20school%20age.pdf">under consultation in 2019</a>, it is currently not <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1165730/Travel_to_school_for_children_of_compulsory_school_age.pdf">government guidance</a> to include free travel in a local authority’s home-to-school travel policy for a child who has been forced to move into temporary accommodation or a refuge. </p>
<p>Unless such guidance is made statutory, and the financial means provided to institute it, the country’s most vulnerable children will continue to suffer the consequences.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216282/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katherine Brickell receives funding from the Urban Studies Foundation and the British Academy for this research.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mel Nowicki receives funding from the Urban Studies Foundation for this research.</span></em></p>Homeless families rehoused in temporary are bearing the brunt of the high travel costs and policies ill-designed to accommodate their specific needs.Katherine Brickell, Professor of Urban Studies, King's College LondonMel Nowicki, Senior Lecturer in Urban Geography, Oxford Brookes UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2171612023-11-06T22:07:05Z2023-11-06T22:07:05ZSupreme Court considers whether to uphold law that keeps guns out of the hands of domestic abusers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557878/original/file-20231106-17-yaa2gd.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=25%2C0%2C5582%2C3732&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Will the federal law prohibiting the possession of firearms by someone subject to a domestic violence restraining order survive?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/wooden-judge-gavel-and-hunting-rifle-over-usa-flag-royalty-free-image/1321809033?phrase=guns+supreme+court&adppopup=true"> iStock / Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Should it be legal to take away the guns of people who are under a domestic violence protective order, which aims to shield victims from their abusers?</p>
<p>That’s the question posed in one of the biggest cases of the current Supreme Court term, focused on the <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/united-states-v-rahimi/">limits of individual gun rights</a>. The case was argued before the justices on Nov. 7, 2023.</p>
<p>The case, <a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/united-states-v-rahimi/">U.S. v. Rahimi</a>, comes in the wake of <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-constitutional-revolution-is-underway-at-the-supreme-court-as-the-conservative-supermajority-rewrites-basic-understandings-of-the-roots-of-us-law-212944">revolutionary changes in doctrine</a> over the past two court terms. Now, justices must grapple with how far the new principles will reach.</p>
<p>Two years ago, the court began what many consider to be a <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-constitutional-revolution-is-underway-at-the-supreme-court-as-the-conservative-supermajority-rewrites-basic-understandings-of-the-roots-of-us-law-212944">constitutional revolution</a>. </p>
<p>The new supermajority of six conservative justices rapidly <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-supreme-court-is-back-in-session-with-new-controversial-cases-that-stand-to-change-many-americans-lives-heres-what-to-expect-190819">introduced new doctrines</a> across a range of controversies, including <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-revolutionary-ruling-and-not-just-for-abortion-a-supreme-court-scholar-explains-the-impact-of-dobbs-185823">abortion</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/supreme-court-sweeps-aside-new-yorks-limits-on-carrying-a-gun-raising-second-amendment-rights-to-new-heights-183486">guns</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/religion-at-the-supreme-court-3-essential-reads-163712">religion</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/supreme-court-chief-justice-john-roberts-uses-conflicting-views-of-race-to-resolve-americas-history-of-racial-discrimination-209670">race</a>.</p>
<p>When the court announces a new principle – for example, a limit on the powers of a specific part of government – citizens and lawyers are not sure of the full ramifications of the new rule. How far will it go? What other areas of law will come under the same umbrella?</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-seismic-change-has-taken-place-at-the-supreme-court-but-its-not-clear-if-the-shift-is-about-principle-or-party-190815">revolutionary period</a>, aggressive litigants will push the boundaries of the new doctrine, attempting to stretch it to their advantage. After a period of uncertainty, a case that defines the limits on the new rule is likely to emerge.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549346/original/file-20230920-31-ewmu37.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Guns lying on glass display shelves." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549346/original/file-20230920-31-ewmu37.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549346/original/file-20230920-31-ewmu37.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549346/original/file-20230920-31-ewmu37.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549346/original/file-20230920-31-ewmu37.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549346/original/file-20230920-31-ewmu37.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549346/original/file-20230920-31-ewmu37.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549346/original/file-20230920-31-ewmu37.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Semi-automatic firearms are seen displayed on shelves in a gun store in Austin, Texas.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/semi-automatic-firearms-are-seen-displayed-on-shelves-in-news-photo/1638819814?adppopup=true">Brandon Bell/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Focus on guns</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/cases/united-states-v-rahimi/">U.S. v. Rahimi</a> may be the limiting case for gun rights, identifying the stopping point of the recent changes in Second Amendment doctrine.</p>
<p>Zackey Rahimi is a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/12/us/supreme-court-guns-domestic-violence-orders.html">convicted drug dealer and violent criminal</a> who also had a restraining order in place after assaulting his girlfriend. The court will decide whether the federal law prohibiting the possession of firearms by someone subject to a domestic violence restraining order violates the Second Amendment.</p>
<p>In the 2022 case of <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/20-843_new_m648.pdf">New York Rifle & Pistol v. Bruen</a>, the court announced a <a href="https://theconversation.com/supreme-court-sweeps-aside-new-yorks-limits-on-carrying-a-gun-raising-second-amendment-rights-to-new-heights-183486">new understanding of the Second Amendment</a>. The amendment had long been understood to recognize a limited right to bear arms. Under the Bruen ruling, the amendment instead describes an individual right to carry a gun for self-protection in most places in society, expanding its range to the level of other constitutional rights such as freedom of religion or speech, which apply in public spaces.</p>
<p>However, the court’s conservative justices also tend to argue that constitutional rights are <a href="https://www.justice.gov/archive/ag/speeches/2002/080702eighthcircuitjudgesagremarks.htm">balanced by responsibilities</a> to promote a functional society, a concept known as “<a href="https://www.encyclopedia.com/politics/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/ordered-liberty">ordered liberty</a>.” The practical question is how to know the proper balance between liberty and order. If the right to carry a gun can be regulated but not eradicated, limited but not eliminated, where is the line? </p>
<p>The court’s <a href="https://fedsoc-cms-public.s3.amazonaws.com/update/pdf/L7yMmAwNeVF5wkGkXuhUm6j6paw0YFfP4OOv8UZz.pdf">answer</a> in Bruen is <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/07/26/scotus-history-is-from-motivated-advocacy-groups-00047249">history</a> – a current law does not have to match a specific historical one exactly, but it has to be similar in form and purpose. Whatever gun regulations Americans allowed <a href="https://guides.newman.baruch.cuny.edu/Americanhistory1/earlyrepublic">during the early republic</a> – the critical period from around the 1780s to around the 1860s at the time of the Civil War – are allowable now, with the exception of any that would violate principles added to the Constitution more recently, such as racial equality under the 14th Amendment. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557892/original/file-20231106-15-4pw1ho.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A large white stone building with eight columns at the top of white stone stairs." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557892/original/file-20231106-15-4pw1ho.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/557892/original/file-20231106-15-4pw1ho.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557892/original/file-20231106-15-4pw1ho.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557892/original/file-20231106-15-4pw1ho.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557892/original/file-20231106-15-4pw1ho.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557892/original/file-20231106-15-4pw1ho.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/557892/original/file-20231106-15-4pw1ho.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Supreme Court has expanded the rights of gun owners in recent years.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-supreme-court-of-the-united-states-building-seen-in-news-photo/1696127092?adppopup=true">Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Justice Clarence Thomas, the author of the Bruen ruling, described it this way: The government must “identify a well-established and representative <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/21pdf/20-843_new_m648.pdf#page=27">historical analogue, not a historical twin</a>.” Thomas argued in Bruen that no such historical analogue existed for the limits New York imposed, invalidating the state’s ban on concealed carry permits.</p>
<p>The Rahimi case will provide a critical test of this historical approach to the boundaries of constitutional rights. </p>
<p>Historians have <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-915/275858/20230821165213803_22-915%20tsacProfessorsOfHistoryAndLaw.pdf">presented evidence</a> that there were widespread laws and practices during the early republic limiting gun possession by individuals, like Rahimi, who were judged to be dangerous. However, those dangers did not include domestic violence, which was not deemed the same important concern then that it is now.</p>
<p>The court may consider the laws prevalent in the early republic, which regulated those who “<a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-915/275858/20230821165213803_22-915%20tsacProfessorsOfHistoryAndLaw.pdf#page=27">go armed offensively</a>” or “<a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/22/22-915/275858/20230821165213803_22-915%20tsacProfessorsOfHistoryAndLaw.pdf#page=28">to the fear and terror of any person</a>,” to be analogous to contemporary laws restraining those under a domestic violence restraining order. If so, the ruling will likely uphold Rahimi’s conviction and limit gun rights. </p>
<p>On the other hand, if the court reads those historical standards as more narrow and specific than the contemporary ban on gun possession while under a restraining order, those limits will be struck down.</p>
<h2>The future of gun regulations</h2>
<p>During the Nov. 7 oral arguments, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/supreme-court-second-amendment-11-07-23/index.html">Justice Elena Kagan noted</a> that many of the restrictions now legally imposed on the mentally ill, felons or dangerous people were not on the books during the early republic. </p>
<p>For the majority of justices who are likely to maintain the Bruen standard, the competing positions on how to apply the court’s new historical method were clear. The justices must decide whether the constitutional requirement in Rahimi’s case is a specific historical firearm ban in response to domestic violence or a more general firearm ban in response to threatening behavior. </p>
<p>The more specific kind of ban did not exist “while the founders still walked the Earth,” as Justice Sonia Sotomayor phrased it during oral argument, but the second kind of law did. </p>
<p>Whether the court considers the restrictions on Rahimi to be in the first or second category is the core question, which will also <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-hears-major-gun-case-right-accused-domestic-abusers-poss-rcna123799">determine the future of many gun regulations</a>. </p>
<p><em>This story was updated Nov. 7, 2023, after oral arguments. It incorporates <a href="https://theconversation.com/supreme-court-supermajority-will-clarify-its-constitutional-revolution-this-year-deciding-cases-on-guns-and-regulations-212952">sections of a previous story</a> about the Supreme Court published on Sept. 26, 2023.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217161/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Morgan Marietta does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>An important tool in the fight against domestic violence is under scrutiny in a major US Supreme Court case.Morgan Marietta, Professor of Political Science, University of Texas at ArlingtonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2166052023-10-29T14:00:47Z2023-10-29T14:00:47ZThe latest mass shooting in Sault Ste. Marie highlights Ontario’s epidemic of gender-based violence<iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/the-latest-mass-shooting-in-sault-ste-marie-highlights-ontarios-epidemic-of-gender-based-violence" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>It took only 11 months for Ontario to experience its next mass shooting after the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/19/world/canada/canada-vaughan-shooting-condo.html">one in Vaughan in December 2022</a>. </p>
<p>Sault Ste. Marie residents are contending with the loss of <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/unspeakable-tragedy-3-children-and-2-adults-including-shooter-dead-after-sault-ste-marie-shootings/article_a91ea71c-717b-59aa-b12d-df81adc1e584.html">five lives in Ontario’s latest mass shooting</a> on Oct. 24. Police say the shooting was a case of <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/sault-ste-marie-shooter-was-previously-charged-with-assaulting-cop-court-docs-show/article_4cb167f0-7d35-5f3f-9c62-8168e7499ac3.html">intimate partner violence</a>. </p>
<p>A man allegedly killed three young children and one woman, and wounded another woman, before taking his own life. The shooter has been identified as <a href="https://northernontario.ctvnews.ca/family-ids-gunman-in-sault-ste-marie-shootings-cops-cite-intimate-partner-violence-cp-1.6618101">the father of the children</a>.</p>
<p>As someone who was personally impacted by <a href="https://theconversation.com/i-research-mass-shootings-but-i-never-believed-one-would-happen-in-my-own-condo-in-vaughan-ont-196863">the Vaughan mass shooting</a>, this latest gun violence incident brings with it anxiety, pain and empathy.</p>
<p>With another grim addition to the list of mass shootings in Ontario, now is the time to reflect on why this latest tragedy happened and to ask if resources are available to cope with these gun violence incidents. As a post-disaster researcher, I believe it is important to consider femicide as the context for the mass shooting in Sault Ste. Marie. </p>
<h2>Recognizing femicide</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.femicideincanada.ca/about/types">Femicide</a> is generally defined as the killing of women and girls. It is the most extreme form of violence on a continuum of violence and discrimination against women. </p>
<p>In Ontario, intimate partner violence has been <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/rural-domestic-violence-cbc-investigation-1.6276520">a long-standing issue</a>. A list published by the Ontario Association of Interval and Transition Houses lists <a href="https://www.oaith.ca/assets/library/2021-2022-Annual-Femicide-List-Revised.pdf">54 femicide deaths</a> in the province during 2021-2022, many of which occurred by gun violence.</p>
<p>Recognition of femicide as a specific form of violence has led to increased advocacy and attention for the issue. In 2013, a 26-year-old woman in Bracebridge, Ont., was killed in a <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/bracebridge-shooting-victims-identified/article_74d2dece-a819-506c-a8de-e9fcaa3eeecc.html">murder-suicide perpetrated by a former intimate partner</a>. </p>
<p>The slain woman’s mother has called for using <a href="https://www.muskokaregion.com/life/honouring-victims-of-domestic-homicide-in-bracebridge-as-numbers-rise-in-canada/article_1f7097d5-277b-5730-aab8-e6067593d844.html">the term femicide as opposed to domestic abuse</a>. She has also played an <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/victims-of-violence-slam-federal-government-over-gun-control-reform-1.5980331">instrumental role in federal gun reform legislation</a> through <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/public-safety-canada/news/2019/06/royal-assent-of-legislation-strengthening-gun-laws-to-keep-communities-safe.html">Bill C-71</a> which, when fully implemented, would allow for a background check on a gun buyer’s entire life.</p>
<p>In 2015, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/basil-borutski-trial-triple-murder-verdict-1.4407526">three women were murdered in Renfrew County, Ont</a>. The <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/files/editorial/News/CKW-Inquest-Verdict-Recommendations-SIGNED_Redacted.pdf">findings of the coroner’s inquest</a> included a recommendation that public governments act to formally <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-intimate-partner-violence-should-be-declared-epidemic-by-ontario/">declare intimate partner violence as an epidemic</a>, and to explore adding the term femicide and its definition to the Criminal Code of Canada.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/d1LS1dNdH6Y?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">A podcast co-produced by CityNews on the murders of three women in Bracebridge, Ont., and the inquest’s findings.</span></figcaption>
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<p>In June 2023, the <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/9798749/ontario-wont-declare-intimate-partner-violence-epidemic-following-inquest/">Ontario government refused to recognize femicide as an epidemic</a>. </p>
<p>But the decision by Sault Ste. Marie police to come forward quickly <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/article-advocates-urge-public-governments-to-take-intimate-partner-violence/">using the term intimate partner violence to describe the mass shooting gave advocates renewed hope</a>. </p>
<h2>Mass shootings and misogyny</h2>
<p>There are connections between intimate partner violence and mass shootings. Data from the United States indicates most mass shooting victims are not random: research has indicated that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-021-00330-0">two-thirds of mass shootings are domestic violence incidents</a>, or are perpetrated by shooters with a history of domestic violence. </p>
<p>Police in Lewiston, Maine, are reportedly <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/28/us/maine-shootings-suspect-dead-saturday/index.html">pursuing a theory that a mass shooter went to places that he used to frequent with a longtime ex-girlfriend</a>, killing 18 people on Oct. 25.</p>
<p>For the Sault Ste. Marie mass shooting, police indicated the alleged killer had <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-sault-ste-marie-shooter-had-history-of-intimate-partner-violence/">previously been the subject of intimate partner violence complaints</a>. </p>
<p>There is also a history of other significant mass shootings in Canada that have been related to misogyny. Thirty years after the 1989 École Polytechnique mass shooting, the City of Montréal <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-ecole-polytechnique-montreal-massacre-6-decembre-1989/">changed the words on a memorial plaque</a> from a “tragic event” to a “anti-feminist attack.” </p>
<p>And after the <a href="https://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/a-look-at-the-22-nova-scotians-killed-in-canada-s-worst-mass-shooting-1.6335839">2020 Nova Scotia mass shooting</a>, the final report from the inquiry listed <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/nova-scotia-mass-shooting-gender-based-violence-1.6796068">17 recommendations to address gender-based violence</a>.</p>
<p>After the Vaughan mass shooting, the estranged daughters of the perpetrator called him an <a href="https://toronto.citynews.ca/2022/12/21/vaughan-condo-shooter-daughters-family-statement/">abusive and controlling man</a>.</p>
<h2>Insufficient resources</h2>
<p>Intimate partner violence has a <a href="https://everytownresearch.org/report/guns-and-violence-against-women-americas-uniquely-lethal-intimate-partner-violence-problem/">tragic link to mass shootings</a>. Ontario’s latest mass shooting in Sault Ste. Marie is a case in point. </p>
<p>Advocates working to prevent femicide say that <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-femicides-1.6899109">funding has not kept pace with the growing demand for services</a>. </p>
<p>In the immediate aftermath of the Vaughan mass shooting, I pointed out that <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/vaughan-condo-shooting-resident-support-1.6819413">mental health coping services were not present and consistent</a> when they were needed the most. The <a href="https://www.victimservices-york.org/">victim services agency serving Vaughan</a> pointed to <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/we-were-not-equipped-to-handle-a-mass-shooting-months-after-vaughan-condo-murders-traumatized/article_9f746b3a-e9d1-5a23-bb7d-be2c53504a66.html">insufficient resources</a> to respond to major incidents.</p>
<p>Between January and September of this year, the local victim services agency serving Sault Ste. Marie has <a href="https://www.elliotlaketoday.com/local-news/intimate-partner-violence-on-the-rise-locally-victim-services-of-algoma-7736562">handled 193 calls related to intimate partner violence and assisted 232 individuals</a>. Do they have sufficient resources to continue to meet that demand?</p>
<p>An aspect contributing to the devastating impact of mass shootings in Ontario and Canada is the lack of public funds and political will needed for the prevention of gun violence incidents and the response to their impact.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216605/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jack L. Rozdilsky receives support for research communication and public scholarship from York University. He also receives research support from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research.</span></em></p>A mass shooting in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. has been classified as a case of intimate partner violence.Jack L. Rozdilsky, Associate Professor of Disaster and Emergency Management, York University, CanadaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2125372023-10-23T01:08:42Z2023-10-23T01:08:42ZKids escaping family violence can be vulnerable to intimate partner abuse. We must break the vicious cycle<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553939/original/file-20231016-27-fl2v6o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=25%2C19%2C4255%2C2824&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/woman-covering-her-face-fear-domestic-563105572">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Warning: this article includes graphic descriptions of violence.</em></p>
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<p>Nearly <a href="https://figshare.utas.edu.au/articles/journal_contribution/Ending_unaccompanied_child_homelessness_in_Australia/23306117">13,000 Australian children aged 10 to 17</a> sought help alone from specialist homeless services last year. Many of these young people will have <a href="https://www.mcm.org.au/-/media/mcm/content-repository-files/amplify_turning-up-the-volume-on-young-people-and-family-violence.pdf">escaped family violence</a> and then been <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/young-in-love-and-in-danger/">endangered by abusive partners</a>. </p>
<p>Our respective research tackles this emotionally tough terrain head on, speaking with <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/young-in-love-and-in-danger/">teens experiencing intimate partner violence</a> and children under 18 who experience <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/unaccompanied-homeless-children-in-tasmania/">homelessness</a> and are not accompanied by a parent or guardian.</p>
<p>Children and young people have told us about having nowhere safe to live, feeling invisible to government and being harmed. Their stories show Australia’s adolescent service system is frighteningly out of step with their needs.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/our-child-protection-system-is-clearly-broken-is-it-time-to-abolish-it-for-a-better-model-200716">Our child protection system is clearly broken. Is it time to abolish it for a better model?</a>
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<h2>The reality of vulnerable teens’ lives</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.acms.au/">Australian Child Maltreatment Study</a> reported it findings this year from surveying 8,500 Australians aged 16 and over. It <a href="https://theconversation.com/major-study-reveals-two-thirds-of-people-who-suffer-childhood-maltreatment-suffer-more-than-one-kind-202033">found</a> 28.5% had experienced sexual abuse, 30.9% emotional abuse, 32.0% physical abuse and 39.6% exposure to domestic violence.</p>
<p>For unaccompanied homeless children and young people <a href="https://blogs.qut.edu.au/crime-and-justice-research-centre/files/2022/08/Briefing-Paper-FINAL-online-version.pdf">exposure to domestic violence</a> is even greater. <a href="https://www.csi.edu.au/research/the-cost-of-youth-homelessness-in-australia/">Australian research</a> shows 90% of homeless children and young people witness family violence at home, more than half leave home to escape parental or guardian domestic violence. Some 15% leave home more than 10 times due to violence. </p>
<p>Escaping family violence is a frequent precursor to unaccompanied child homelessness. </p>
<p>As part of research into unaccompanied child homelessness and mental ill-health in Tasmania, Viviana, aged 17, told <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/better-bigger-stronger/">a common story</a>. She escaped family violence only to experience violent and abusive relationships and cycles of homelessness:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Mum kicked me out of home over a pair of school shoes […] she was being very violent, very aggressive […] her partner […] he ended up being quite aggressive and violent […] So I moved in with [my boyfriend’s] family and then things happened with me and that bloke a year later […] And so that’s when I ended up being homeless for a bit.</p>
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<p>Homeless children and young people who do not have a reliable parent or guardian are highly vulnerable. The severity of violence in subsequent relationships they may come to rely on is extreme. Elise was 13 when she met David, who was three years older. During their nine-year relationship, her life was endangered repeatedly:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>He rammed me into the wall, grabbed me by the throat, choked me […] I remember he picked up the couch and smashed it up through the wall […] Smashed up the whole place, carried on, told me, ‘You want to fucking leave because I’m going to come back, I’m going to fucking shoot you.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Lilly was 14 when she met Jase, who was three years older. Being homeless and sleeping rough meant she couldn’t escape his violence and abuse: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>I can’t even remember how many black eyes I had from him […] I’ve got a scar there […] where he’s cut my arm open with a knife, trying to kill me. And there was nothing I could do. I was homeless, so I couldn’t get away from him, because he just knew where I’d be.</p>
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<p>Children and young people who <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/unaccompanied-homeless-children-in-tasmania/">experience homelessness</a> and repeated <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/young-in-love-and-in-danger">cyles of violence</a> talk about persistent <a href="https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au/handle/10072/422436">suicidality</a>, mental illness, abortion, miscarriage and substance use as common features of their lives. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553941/original/file-20231016-20-my1l6s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="young person stands in underpass with graffiti on wall" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553941/original/file-20231016-20-my1l6s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553941/original/file-20231016-20-my1l6s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553941/original/file-20231016-20-my1l6s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553941/original/file-20231016-20-my1l6s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553941/original/file-20231016-20-my1l6s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553941/original/file-20231016-20-my1l6s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553941/original/file-20231016-20-my1l6s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Young people fleeing family violence can get trapped in a cycle of abuse.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/loneliness-262222313">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/major-study-reveals-two-thirds-of-people-who-suffer-childhood-maltreatment-suffer-more-than-one-kind-202033">Major study reveals two-thirds of people who suffer childhood maltreatment suffer more than one kind</a>
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<h2>Mismatched responses</h2>
<p>A lack of supported accommodation options for teens <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(20)30075-X/fulltext">places girls in particular</a> in highly vulnerable positions. Unable to access safe spaces, <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/young-in-love-and-in-danger/">they become trapped</a> in violent and abusive relationships. </p>
<p>They are being failed by systems that do not adequately recognise and engage with child and youth specific domestic violence and homelessness. Children and young people describe accessing support services that dangerously misread the risks they encounter. </p>
<p>Katie described systemic failure she faced at age 15. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>I tried to get Centrelink [benefits] and they refused me and I told them my situation. I said, 'Well, like, I have no family, I have no money. I’m at risk of homelessness’ and all they gave me was a Kids’ Helpline number […] The system failed me, actually, and the only thing that they could do for me to get money is get Tom [her abusive partner] to claim Family Tax Benefits. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Viviana – who had escaped sexual abuse at home – described how she felt her ongoing risks were missed in counselling and therapy targeted to children in both school and state child and adolescent mental health services. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>They weren’t actually giving us like, I guess, adult solutions for the adult problems we did actually have, even though we shouldn’t have had them, we were only kids. And we sat down watching Lego videos on how to deal with depression and stuff like that. And I was like, this ain’t going to do shit for me.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Meeting them where they are</h2>
<p>The mismatch between the reality of children’s lives and the availability of systems and services to support them is stark. Children’s efforts to remove themselves from harm may be characterised by overstretched systems as <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/research/too-hard/">proof of their “independence”</a>. </p>
<p>What they need are standalone responses that address the extremities of their need. Yet neither national <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/housing-support-programs-services-housing/developing-the-national-housing-and-homelessness-plan">homelessness</a> or <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/ending-violence">domestic violence</a> policies are yet to acknowledge the relationship of domestic violence and homelessness in the lives of children and young people. </p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/yes-we-see-you-why-a-national-plan-for-homelessness-must-make-thousands-of-children-on-their-own-a-priority-200918">Yes, we see you. Why a national plan for homelessness must make thousands of children on their own a priority</a>
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<p>State and federal governments can begin to fix the cracks in the system by ensuring all agencies are held accountable for upholding the rights of children outlined by the <a href="https://www.unicef.org.au/united-nations-convention-on-the-rights-of-the-child">United Nations convention</a> – especially of those without family they can rely on.</p>
<p>There are positive advances underway in <a href="https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/new-cabinet-keep-delivering-victorians">Victoria</a> and <a href="https://www.premier.tas.gov.au/site_resources_2015/additional_releases/department_structures_to_strengthen_tasmanian_outcomes">Tasmania</a> to break the silo of child protection and re-build child and adolescent service systems with prevention and early intervention at their core. </p>
<p>A collaborative, integrated response that recognises the complexity and reality of children and young people’s lives including their independent housing, health, and safety needs is critical. This will only happen when we grow up and acknowledge children have adult problems too.</p>
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<p><em>For information and advice about family and intimate partner violence contact <a href="https://www.1800respect.org.au/">1800 RESPECT</a> (1800 737 732). If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, contact 000.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212537/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carmel Hobbs is affiliated with the Youth Network of Tasmania (YNOT) as Secretary of the Board.
This article includes reference to research funded by Anglicare Tasmania and conducted by Carmel in her role as a social researcher for Anglicare Tasmania's Social Action and Research Centre. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Catherine Robinson receives funding from Australian Research Council and the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute. Catherine is a non-executive board director of Homelessness Australia and the Youth Network of Tasmania. This article includes reference to research funded by Anglicare Tasmania and conducted by Catherine in her role as a social researcher for Anglicare Tasmania's Social Action and Research Centre.</span></em></p>Some children and young people escape family violence, only to find themselves alone, homeless and in violent relationships. How can we support and protect these vulnerable adolescents?Carmel Hobbs, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of TasmaniaCatherine Robinson, Associate Professor in Housing and Communities, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2158742023-10-18T05:17:01Z2023-10-18T05:17:01ZA new bill would bring Victoria’s strangulation laws in line with other states – but consent complicates matters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554453/original/file-20231018-21-1ptr0l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=25%2C60%2C5725%2C3768&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-man-hands-holding-woman-rape-1276184743">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In October 2011, Victorian woman Joy Rowley was strangled to death by her intimate partner. It was not the first time he had strangled her. Over the eight-month period leading up to her death she had called the police multiple times to report <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-23/joy-rowley-james-mulhall-inquest-victoria-police-apology/9790738">strangulation attacks</a>. </p>
<p>In the inquest that followed, the coroner highlighted an incident months before she died that involved strangulation and a knife. Police did not lay charges against the offender James Mulhall until several months after that incident. Rowley’s family and others have tirelessly campaigned since for the introduction of a strangulation <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/could-police-have-saved-joy-from-being-strangled-to-death-20180521-p4zgmu.html">offence</a>. </p>
<p>Today, 12 years later, the Victorian parliament introduced a bill to criminalise <a href="https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/non-fatal-strangulation-become-stand-alone-offence">non-fatal strangulation</a> as a standalone offence.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/when-it-comes-to-family-violence-young-women-are-too-often-ignored-190547">When it comes to family violence, young women are too often ignored</a>
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<h2>Common and gendered</h2>
<p>Strangulation, also referred to as choking, means stopping or hindering a person’s breath or blood flow through neck compression. </p>
<p>It is a common and gendered form of violence reported by 25–60% of family violence <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1748895820949607?journalCode=crjb">victim-survivors</a>. It is recognised as a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0093854819843973">form of coercive control</a> – a pattern of controlling and manipulative behaviours within a relationship. Through strangulation, abusers can show they literally hold the victim-survivor’s life in their <a href="https://www.ag.gov.au/system/files/2023-09/national-principles-to-address-coercive-control-family-and-domestic-violence.PDF">hands</a>. </p>
<p>A person who has experienced strangulation from their abusive partner is <a href="https://www.jem-journal.com/article/S0736-4679(07)00414-3/fulltext">six or seven times more likely</a> than other victim-survivors of family violence to experience death, or very serious harm, in the weeks or months that follow. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/7-red-flags-your-teen-might-be-in-an-abusive-relationship-and-6-signs-its-escalating-212536">7 red flags your teen might be in an abusive relationship – and 6 signs it's escalating</a>
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<h2>Injury and death</h2>
<p>Some 15% of deaths attributed to family violence are caused by <a href="https://apo.org.au/node/174811">strangulation</a>. Death can occur in around a <a href="https://www.familyjusticecenter.org/resources/physiological-consequences-of-strangulation-seconds-to-minute-timeline-2/">minute</a> with a level of pressure required being less than what’s needed to open a <a href="https://www.allianceforhope.com/easy-as-pulling-a-trigger-anchorage-da-spreads-awareness-about-strangulation/#:%7E:text=Stopping%20the%20flow%20of%20blood,pressure%20to%20pull%20the%20trigger.">soft drink can</a>. </p>
<p>Sometimes death can occur weeks or months after strangulation because of <a href="https://www.courts.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/698586/review-of-dv-deaths-involving-fatal-and-non-fatal-strangulation-in-queensland.pdf">blood clots, stroke or brain damage</a>. When it is not fatal, injuries can be long-lasting including loss of consciousness, brain injuries resulting in memory loss, and pregnancy miscarriage. </p>
<p>Short-term injuries are common too, and may include bruising and nausea. However, in about 50% of cases victim-survivors have no visible injuries even when they have lost <a href="https://www.kemh.health.wa.gov.au/%7E/media/HSPs/NMHS/Hospitals/WNHS/Documents/Patients-resources/SARC---Non-fatal-strangulation.pdf">consciousness</a>. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/family-violence-can-include-fire-threats-and-burning-we-can-do-more-to-protect-women-195197">Family violence can include fire threats and burning. We can do more to protect women</a>
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<h2>The new bill</h2>
<p>In Victoria, strangulation is commonly charged as an assault, which does not reflect the seriousness of the offence. Victoria’s proposed strangulation legislation includes two forms of the <a href="https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/non-fatal-strangulation-become-stand-alone-offence">offence</a>. The most serious form will require the prosecution to prove the offender intended to cause injury. It will attract a maximum ten-year prison sentence. </p>
<p>A second form won’t require proof of injury and could attract a five-year maximum penalty. In such cases, it will be possible for the accused to demonstrate there was affirmative consent and avoid conviction. The government says this will: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>[…] provide protection for people who have engaged in genuinely consensual non-fatal strangulation during sexual activity and no intentional injury has occurred.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Choking and sex</h2>
<p>Historically, strangulation has been understood as a risky and edgy form of bondage and domination sexual practices. But despite its dangers, strangulation has become an increasingly common part of sex, especially among younger people. This may be driven by increasing engagement with pornography where depictions of choking are <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/355594338_Pornography_Consumption_and_Sexual_Choking_An_Evaluation_of_Theoretical_Mechanisms">frequent</a>. </p>
<p>A survey of over 4,000 American undergraduate students found around one quarter of women reported being choked in their <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34242530/">most recent sexual experience</a>. The same study also highlighted the gendered nature of the activity, with women much more likely to be choked by their male partner than the other way around. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554445/original/file-20231018-23-1cdl7u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=27%2C20%2C4573%2C3428&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="woman sits on bed facing wall to hide face" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554445/original/file-20231018-23-1cdl7u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=27%2C20%2C4573%2C3428&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/554445/original/file-20231018-23-1cdl7u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554445/original/file-20231018-23-1cdl7u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554445/original/file-20231018-23-1cdl7u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554445/original/file-20231018-23-1cdl7u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554445/original/file-20231018-23-1cdl7u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/554445/original/file-20231018-23-1cdl7u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Other states have already introduced laws to make non-fatal strangulation a crime.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/concept-sexual-harassment-against-women-rape-1468255889">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Should consent be a defence?</h2>
<p>There is increasing debate about whether consent should be a defence to any form of strangulation, given the risks and <a href="https://commons.allard.ubc.ca/fac_pubs/704/">dangers associated with it</a>. </p>
<p>Reported cases of rape and sexual assault frequently feature claims by the accused that violent sex, including strangulation, was consensual. This leads to challenges to victim-survivors’ credibility and “he said-she said” <a href="https://www.queenslandjudgments.com.au/caselaw/qca/2020/159">arguments</a>. Some experts are worried this resurrects the “<a href="https://commons.allard.ubc.ca/fac_pubs/704/">she asked for it</a>” defence in rape and sexual assault cases.</p>
<p>In Queensland, where the strangulation offence has been in place since <a href="http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/cc189994/s315a.html#:%7E:text=315A%20Choking%2C%20suffocation%20or%20strangulation%20in%20a%20domestic%20setting,-(1)%20A%20person&text=(ii)%20the%20choking%2C%20suffocation,Family%20Violence%20Protection%.">2016</a>, lawyers report allegations of non-consensual strangulation during sex generally result in sexual offence charges, rather than for strangulation. </p>
<p>Claims strangulation was consensual have been <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/13657127211036175">rare</a>. This likely points to low levels of complaint rather than that non-consensual strangulation during sex it is <a href="https://law.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/4287968/NFS-Services-Report-Sharman-et-al-2022.pdf">not happening</a>. </p>
<p>Queensland court statistics show when a charge of strangulation is lodged, about 23% of charges lead to a conviction of strangulation. The other 75% of matters are withdrawn because victim-survivors do not wish to proceed, there is insufficient evidence or a different charge <a href="https://law.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/4096535/Fitzgerald-et-al-ODPP-report.pdf">such as assault proceeds</a>. Conviction of strangulation in Queensland results in imprisonment in over <a href="https://www.courts.qld.gov.au/court-users/researchers-and-public/stats">95% of cases</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/first-nations-women-dont-always-access-health-care-after-head-injuries-from-family-violence-heres-why-206084">First Nations women don't always access health care after head injuries from family violence. Here's why</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>An important step</h2>
<p>Victoria is the final state or territory in Australia to introduce a standalone offence of <a href="https://law.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/4083784/Non-fatal-Strangulation-Laws-in-Australia.pdf">strangulation</a>. </p>
<p>Elsewhere the introduction of the offence has significantly improved knowledge among front-line workers about the risks and harms of strangulation. Greater understanding of its risk and harms should lead to more appropriate <a href="https://www.redrosefoundation.com.au/strangulation">referrals and enhanced safety</a>. </p>
<p>The proposed law is an important step in recognising the specific risks and harms associated with this behaviour. Now it’s been introduced to parliament, the text of the bill will likely be debated and potentially adapted before being passed. Hopefully the introduction of the offence will bring with it appropriate training opportunities and greater awareness.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>For information and advice about family and intimate partner violence contact <a href="https://www.1800respect.org.au/">1800 RESPECT</a> (1800 737 732). If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, contact 000. <a href="https://kidshelpline.com.au/">Kids Helpline</a> is 1800 55 1800. <a href="https://ntv.org.au/get-help/">Men’s Referral Service</a> (call 1300 766 491) offers advice and counselling to men looking to change their behaviour.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/215874/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Heather Douglas receives funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>The Victorian parliament has introduced a bill to criminalise non-fatal strangulation – but consent could be a defence.Heather Douglas, Professor of Law, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2147572023-10-15T19:09:49Z2023-10-15T19:09:49Z‘I hope I’ve honoured you well’: Shanelle Dawson reclaims her mother’s story in one of two new books on Lyn Dawson<p>When Shanelle Dawson was just four years old, her parents were at the centre of a suburban tragedy when Lyn Dawson suddenly went missing. Her mother’s disappearance would not be classified as murder until 2001, with her father eventually held responsible for the crime in 2022.</p>
<p>Just hours after her mother disappeared from her life, Shanelle’s teenage babysitter, Joanne Curtis (whom she refers to as “J” in her new book) moved into her mother’s bed, wore her mother’s clothes, and (from 1984), her mother’s wedding ring. </p>
<p>“I felt unloved by J,” Dawson writes of her reluctant stepmother, who was her father’s student (at Cromer High School on Sydney’s northern beaches) when they began their relationship. “She didn’t want to be my mother and she certainly wasn’t.” Curtis would divorce Chris Dawson in 1993.</p>
<p>Shanelle did not confront her father about his role in her mother’s death until September 2018, five months after the podcast The Teacher’s Pet, by investigative journalist Hedley Thomas, was launched.</p>
<p>Her younger sister Sherryn, who was just two years old when their mother disappeared, remains loyal to their father. She and Shanelle are now estranged.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Review: My Mother’s Eyes – Shanelle Dawson with Alley Pascoe (Hachette); The Teacher’s Pet – Hedley Thomas (Pan Macmillan).</em></p>
<hr>
<p>In her book, <a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/shanelle-dawson/my-mothers-eyes">My Mother’s Eyes</a> (written with journalist Alley Pascoe), Shanelle Dawson writes:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>In these pages, I’ve capitalised Mum and Mother as a sign of respect. I haven’t done the same for dad and father.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>These blunt but powerful words set the tone for a narrative that is compelling, if difficult, reading. Dawson’s journey has been far from easy. She left home at 17 and spent 15 years travelling the world, from the age of 18. She also lost a partner she described as her “soulmate”, when he was found dead in his hammock while travelling without her in Brazil. In 2014, she became a single mother.</p>
<p>Some of her coping mechanisms – like working with psychics to help tie up loose ends – may come across as confronting, or at least strange. She writes, for example, that it was a psychic who first made her realise the truth about her father.</p>
<p>“Please don’t judge me,” she implores in her foreword. She notes that while she has been fortunate in many ways, the book is an opportunity to give her mother a voice, and it is an attempt to exorcise her own trauma.</p>
<p>In many ways, Dawson’s work is about fear. The fear of not being able to remember, fear of never finding her mother’s body, and fear of how crimes of domestic violence continue to be committed. Fear is never straightforward; it is layered – and here it is inseparable from grief. </p>
<p>Dawson explains:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I’ve had psychics tell me that my Mother’s precious body isn’t in one piece anymore. […] I don’t think we’ll get the closure of burying her body whole. That’s a brutal thing to try to come to terms with.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>For Dawson, there was also a fear of the truth, bound up with what the conviction of her mother’s murderer would mean. She writes that: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>The world sees a monster, but I see my dad. Despite it all, I still love him. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Dawson’s father may not be her “Father”, but he is still a man she has loved for her whole life.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/true-crime-entertainment-like-the-teachers-pet-can-shine-a-light-on-cold-cases-but-does-it-help-or-hinder-justice-being-served-189787">True crime entertainment like The Teacher's Pet can shine a light on cold cases - but does it help or hinder justice being served?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The Teacher’s Pet</h2>
<p>Thomas released the first episode of <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-teachers-pet/id1385379989">The Teacher’s Pet</a> in May 2018. After 17 episodes, which uncovered new evidence and new witnesses, one trial for murder and another trial for carnal knowledge of a schoolgirl, Chris Dawson is now incarcerated. </p>
<p>Dawson, a former physical education teacher, now 75, was sentenced to 24 years for murder in 2022 with a non-parole period of 18 years, and three years for sexual offences in 2023 with a non-parole period of two years. An appeal against the murder conviction has <a href="https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/8005817/chris-dawson-eyes-appeal-after-sentence/">reportedly been lodged</a>.</p>
<p>True crime podcasts of today owe a great debt to Sarah Koenig’s compelling long-form journalism in 2014’s <a href="https://serialpodcast.org">Serial</a>, with The Teacher’s Pet leading the boom of journalistic true-crime podcasts in Australia. Stories in this format are now ubiquitous. But just as many true-crime books fall short of readers’ expectations, many true-crime podcasts do not meet the demands of discerning listeners. The simple recounting of events is insufficient, especially when it comes to cold cases. </p>
<p>Consumers of true crime want accuracy, attention to detail and compelling theories that can be tested. As human beings, we are instinctively curious. We want answers. In short, we often obsess over cold cases because there is a tantalising feeling that a crime just <em>might</em> be solved.</p>
<p>The motivation of the podcaster is also crucial. As Thomas has <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/dec/19/true-crime-podcasts-mandy-matney-murdaugh-murders-hedley-thomas-teachers-pet-interview">said</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I think the best podcasts probably come from a purpose that the storyteller feels. And I think listeners hear that. They hear the authenticity, the righteous indignation, of the storyteller as they’re going through it. You need to be fairly invested.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In Australia, the justice system can be perceived as a wheel that is painstakingly slow to turn, while the media is typically quite chaotic and rushed, driven by punishing reporting deadlines. Yet each is deeply interested in the other – and occasionally keen to exert their power.</p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="The book cover for The Teacher's Pet by Hedley Thomas. Pale print on a black background. There is a wedding photo of Lyn Dawson." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551661/original/file-20231003-17-afdgj0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/551661/original/file-20231003-17-afdgj0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=909&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551661/original/file-20231003-17-afdgj0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=909&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551661/original/file-20231003-17-afdgj0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=909&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551661/original/file-20231003-17-afdgj0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1142&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551661/original/file-20231003-17-afdgj0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1142&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/551661/original/file-20231003-17-afdgj0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1142&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Teacher’s Pet by Hedley Thomas.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pan Macmillan</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>For example, Thomas was subpoenaed to give evidence when Dawson was tried for murder. His podcast became unavailable in Australia, and he was unable to cover the trial as if he were just another journalist. The book’s epilogue, titled “The Murder Trial”, is written by journalist and author Matthew Condon, who, with his colleagues, was able to cover the proceedings. </p>
<p>Thomas is acutely aware of how close reporters go to the law’s edges. Almost an entire paragraph in his acknowledgements is dedicated to various lawyers. In pushing back against the legal fraternity, Thomas asserts:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Although they had no insight into the workings of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in the case, Lyn’s family and many of my legal and police sources were confident Chris Dawson would not have been charged and prosecuted if it were not for The Teacher’s Pet.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This is a big claim, but there is something to be said about a podcast that has attracted nearly 30 million listeners around the world. It has had much more attention than the two coronial inquiries that preceded it – in 2001 and 2003 – into the disappearance of Lyn Dawson. The Teacher’s Pet brought widespread awareness to the case, and an enormous amount of public pressure “for authorities to take action”.</p>
<p>Both inquests found that the woman born Lynette Joy Simms was dead and that a “known person” was responsible for her death, yet neither of these outcomes prompted the laying of criminal charges.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.panmacmillan.com.au/9781760784782/">The Teacher’s Pet</a>, as a podcast and now a book, highlights many of the issues that surrounded the formal investigations into Lyn Dawson’s disappearance. Thomas reviews transcripts, conducts new interviews, follows up abandoned leads and finds new evidence. None of this is easy work, and everything is complicated by the passage of time. He writes:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The longer it goes, the harder it is to rely on people’s memories about what they saw or heard. Telephone records, credit card records and CCTV footage – all the information you would normally rely upon in a murder investigation – are all lost or destroyed.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Chillingly, Thomas notes: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>For far too long, investigative agencies did not countenance the probability that a significant number of missing person cases were in fact well-concealed homicides.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Readers can experience Thomas’s investigation firsthand in this book. We gain insights into his processes: how he collates information, builds timelines and talks to people connected to the case. </p>
<p>We also see how a sense of urgency saw Thomas collect a box of documents from the 2001 coronial inquest, tear it open in his car and sit parked on the side of a road for hours while he reviewed material looking for precious clues. Disappointments and triumphs are laid bare. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-criminal-record-women-and-australian-true-crime-stories-82590">A criminal record: women and Australian true crime stories</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Should we or shouldn’t we?</h2>
<p>The nexus between Thomas and Shanelle Dawson is complicated. Dawson is openly appreciative of Thomas’s efforts to find justice for her mother and those who loved her. She likes him “immensely as a person” and has huge “respect for him as a journalist”. </p>
<p>Thomas also uncovered details of the mother who was lost for so long, including footage from ABC television’s <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5210360/">Chequerboard</a>, in which an episode on twins included an interview with Chris Dawson and his twin Paul and also featured Lyn Dawson. He returned rare maternal moments to a daughter routinely swept up in what she describes as “familiar grief”.</p>
<p>I was on a panel with Thomas (alongside Felicity Packard and Paul Barclay) for the Canberra Writers Festival in 2019, to discuss <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/bigideas/true-crime-in-australian-history/11543466">True Crime in Australian History</a>. He was confident but unassuming; he did not seem like a brash reporter looking for a quick headline. There was an urgency in his voice. </p>
<p>I could also hear a light layer of exhaustion, reflecting the effect on his work and home life as he worked hard on a case many people thought would forever stay cold. This comes through in his book.</p>
<p>In her book, Shanelle Dawson shouts and swears on the page. Her anger is a testament to her honesty. For example, when she lists some of her father’s explanations for her mother’s disappearance – from “She ran away with a religious leader” through to “She didn’t love us anymore” – Dawson writes: “Bullshit”. </p>
<p>Dawson does not begrudge the recognition Thomas has received for his work. Making a profit from it is something else, and she is uncomfortable that the rights for a miniseries based on Thomas’s podcast have been sold. He has, though, made a difference and helped give a family what they needed most: closure. It is inevitable that someone, somewhere will make money from it. </p>
<p>Dawson also admits umbrage at the title, The Teacher’s Pet, which, she argues, makes the story less about her mother and more about Joanne Curtis. It is easy to side with Dawson, but it is also hard to ignore what Curtis was going through, as she was suddenly elevated from a part-time babysitter to a full-time parent. There are, simply, so many victims in this case.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-clearings-investigation-of-the-family-invites-us-to-ask-whats-the-appeal-and-risk-of-crime-stories-based-on-real-events-206514">The Clearing's investigation of The Family invites us to ask: what's the appeal – and risk – of crime stories based on real events?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Yes, we should</h2>
<p>Chris Dawson waited six weeks to report his wife missing to police. He waited seven months to claim abandonment, so he could apply for the dissolution of his marriage to Lyn, allowing him to move on and remarry. </p>
<p>For Lyn’s family, their wait was much longer. It was more than 40 years between Lyn’s death and hearing the word “guilty” uttered by a judge in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.</p>
<p>Lyn Dawson’s story – and the thousands like it – deserve our attention. We live in a society that routinely fails to protect its citizens. So many people have fallen through the cracks we all know are there, yet never seem able to fill. </p>
<p>As individuals, we might not feel we can deliver on major structural change, but we can protect the memories of those who have been lost. We can also learn to be more aware of the signs of different types of abuse, including coercive control and physical violence. We can offer support and, perhaps, manage to help one person at a time.</p>
<p>If victims and their families wait decades for justice then, surely, we can give a few hours of our time to engage with these stories, especially if we have access to “good” true crime. Thomas and Dawson both give us books that are worth our time.</p>
<p>The research done by Thomas is meticulous. This is reflected in his book’s end matter, which presents a timeline, a summary of the story’s central figures and a dozen pages of endnotes. </p>
<p>Dawson has chosen to round out her work in a different way. She offers a list of resources for those who need help, and a plea to support crisis centres for women. A portion of her book’s proceeds will go to <a href="https://www.womenscommunityshelters.org.au">Women’s Community Shelters</a>, a registered charity working to provide emergency accommodation for homeless women in New South Wales.</p>
<p>The final words in Dawson’s book offer a note of thanks to her Mother:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I’m certain you’ve been with me while I write and possibly even whispered in my ear. I hope I’ve honoured you well and reclaimed our story in the best possible way.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>You have, Shanelle. You have.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214757/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rachel Franks does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Two new books go behind the scenes on the Teacher’s Pet case. One is by Lyn Dawson’s daughter, Shanelle, and the other is by Hedley Thomas, creator of the internationally successful podcast.Rachel Franks, Honorary Associate Lecturer, School of Humanities and Social Science, University of NewcastleLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2129462023-09-27T12:24:22Z2023-09-27T12:24:22ZHarassment and abuse perceived to harm poor women less − new research finds a ‘thicker skin’ bias<p>People think sexual harassment and domestic abuse are less harmful for women in poverty than for higher-income women, according to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2023.104472">four studies</a> involving 3,052 Americans conducted by <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=McvKSycAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">my</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=hNlMsXkAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">colleagues</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=H-H6_qYAAAAJ">me</a>. We also found that people believe women in poverty require less help and support when experiencing these kinds of sexual misconduct. </p>
<p>My research partners and I recruited participants of different ages, genders and incomes. We asked them to read about either a low-income woman or a high-income woman who was dealing with workplace sexual harassment or intimate partner abuse. Then we had participants rate how distressing these instances would be for the woman. </p>
<p>The harassment events described inappropriate behavior from a co-worker, such as sexual comments and unwanted advances, while domestic abuse events included threats, demeaning comments and physical violence from the woman’s partner. In some of the studies, participants also rated how much social support or bystander intervention would be necessary for these events.</p>
<p>Our participants rated the harassment and abuse events as less upsetting for the lower-income woman than for the higher-income woman. They also thought the lower-income woman would need less emotional support from friends and family and less help from bystanders than the higher-income woman. On average, participants thought she needed only <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2023.104472">85% as much help</a> as her higher-income counterpart. </p>
<p>The result was the same whether the woman was white, Black, East Asian or Latina. Both low- and high-income study participants shared this pattern of judgment – as did male and female participants.</p>
<h2>Why it matters</h2>
<p>There is no data that shows lower-income women are less affected by gender-based violence – in fact, there is evidence they are often <a href="https://doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.20.6.625">more affected</a>.</p>
<p>Women in poverty are <a href="https://nwlc.org/resource/out-of-the-shadows-an-analysis-of-sexual-harassment-charges-filed-by-working-women">more likely to experience sexual harassment</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-018-0019-8">domestic abuse</a> – and <a href="https://doi.org/10.5070/L3262045668">have more difficulty finding support</a> after experiencing sexual misconduct. Our research suggests that stereotypes about toughness may contribute to the neglect low-income women encounter when they seek help after violence. </p>
<p>It isn’t that study participants didn’t like the low-income woman. In fact, in our studies, participants rated the low-income woman as friendlier and warmer than the higher-income woman. But liking the low-income woman didn’t prevent participants from thinking the harassment and abuse would be less harmful for her. </p>
<p>Such perceptions may have wide-ranging consequences. For example, low-income women may not receive the care they need from those around them. They also may be disproportionately neglected by those in powerful positions, such as human resources managers and police investigating domestic abuse. </p>
<p>Biased perceptions may help explain why lower-income women <a href="https://doi.org/10.5070/L3262045668">encounter more barriers in the legal system</a>. </p>
<p>Already, the neglect of low-income women has been effectively part of U.S. federal workplace law based on <a href="https://brooklynworks.brooklaw.edu/blr/vol70/iss3/1/">several rulings from courts hearing sexual harassment claims</a>. For example, in the 1995 case <a href="https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=6933014541839038196&q=Gross+v.+Burggraf&hl=en&as_sdt=40000006&as_vis=1">Gross v. Burggraf</a>, the court ruled that sexually harassing behaviors in a “white collar” workplace do not necessarily qualify as harassment in “blue collar” contexts like construction sites. </p>
<p>This logic echoes our study participants’ judgments – and also partially explains why low-income women have spoken out about being <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/20/us/the-metoo-moment-blue-collar-women-ask-what-about-us.html">sidelined by the #MeToo movement</a>.</p>
<h2>What other research is being done</h2>
<p>Our research fits with a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/ejsp.2843">growing</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2017.09.002">body</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/xap0000442">of work</a> examining beliefs around experiencing adversity. People seem to widely <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1368430215625781">endorse the idea</a> “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Individuals who have experienced past hardship, such as women experiencing financial difficulties, are perceived by others to have grown a “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/bpp.2020.33">thicker skin</a>,” making them less affected by new negative events.</p>
<p>Our findings show this kind of bias exists for low-income women – and highlight the need for strategies to counteract this biased belief.</p>
<p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take on interesting academic work.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212946/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nathan Cheek received funding from the National Science Foundation. </span></em></p>While women in poverty are more likely to experience sexual harassment and domestic abuse than higher-income women, people assume it is less distressing for them.Nathan Cheek, Assistant Professor of Psychological Sciences, Purdue UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2125362023-09-10T20:05:52Z2023-09-10T20:05:52Z7 red flags your teen might be in an abusive relationship – and 6 signs it’s escalating<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547111/original/file-20230908-17-c5ry5k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=34%2C34%2C5716%2C3733&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/back-silhouette-couple-walking-holding-hands-256187347">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australian teens need adults to help them recognise red flags for potentially abusive relationships.</p>
<p>The Australian Bureau of Statistics <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/domestic-violence/family-domestic-sexual-violence-australia-2019/contents/summary">estimates</a> 2.2 million adults have been victims of physical and/or sexual violence from a partner since the age of 15. Almost <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/young-in-love-and-in-danger/">one in three Australian teens</a> aged 18–19 report experiences of intimate partner violence in the previous year. </p>
<p>But physical, sexual, or psychological abuse in teen intimate relationships remains an invisible issue. The <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/ending-violence">First National Action Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children</a> fails to mention it at all and
<a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/08861099221108381">Australia lacks</a> youth-specific domestic violence support services. </p>
<p>We know teens are experiencing intimate partner violence that is putting their lives in danger. But they are dependent on <a href="http://rcfv.archive.royalcommission.vic.gov.au/">informal networks</a> for assistance. Abuse can impact all parts of their lives and their age and stage of development make them even more vulnerable to its effects. </p>
<p>I <a href="https://www.anglicare-tas.org.au/young-in-love-and-in-danger/">interviewed</a> 17 young people about their experiences of teen intimate partner violence from when they were under 18. They wanted support and insight from the adults around them.</p>
<h2>‘I hadn’t experienced a proper relationship before’</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.jahonline.org/article/S1054-139X(19)30815-8/fulltext">Limited relationship experience</a> can prevent young people identifying red flags for intimate partner violence. Interviewee Elise said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>As a young teen, I hadn’t experienced a proper relationship before; I just kind of thought this is how it is.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>While physical and sexual violence cross clear lines, <a href="https://www.anrows.org.au/publication/it-depends-on-what-the-definition-of-domestic-violence-is-how-young-people-conceptualise-domestic-violence-and-abuse/">Australian teens</a> report difficulty recognising more subtle forms of violence and control, such as emotional and technology-facilitated abuse. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-government-has-released-its-action-plans-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children-will-they-be-enough-211606">The government has released its action plans to end violence against women and children. Will they be enough?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>7 red flags that can happen early</h2>
<p>Young people identified red flags in their past intimate relationships and described how difficult it was to see them in the moment. On their own these behaviours and actions may not be problematic. For example, spending lots of time together is a relatively normal part of a new intimate relationship.</p>
<p>But concern should arise when these behaviours become part of a pattern. They can become integrated into everyday life, making them difficult to recognise – and they can escalate over time. Here are some examples of red flags for teen intimate relationships that can begin a pattern of violence and abuse:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>being together all the time, using technology to monitor location when not together and a sense of always “being on call”</p></li>
<li><p>sharing passwords to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0747563219304315">social media accounts</a> or devices (or setting up shared profiles)</p></li>
<li><p>turning up unannounced or “as a surprise”</p></li>
<li><p>saying “I love you” very early in the relationship, talking about living together or having children. This is sometimes called “<a href="https://www.thehotline.org/resources/signs-of-love-bombing/">love bombing</a>”</p></li>
<li><p>showering with gifts and grand gestures</p></li>
<li><p>contacting someone’s friends or family to find out where they are</p></li>
<li><p>framing controlling behaviours as “care” or “concern”.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Young person Gina said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We had a joint Facebook [account], because I wasn’t allowed to really talk to people without him seeing it […] He had to have the password.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Ingrid’s partner framed control as care:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>He’d just perpetually check where I am, and then sometimes he’d just turn up […] He’d be like, ‘I’m just checking that you’re safe.’</p>
</blockquote>
<p>If a teen begins to feel like their autonomy and freedom to make choices are being restricted, it is a clear cause for concern. Jamie said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I didn’t have contribution into simple things like what movie to watch.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Sam felt like they had to spend time with their partner, even if they didn’t want to: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>I’d spend hours […] just watching them play video games, because I didn’t feel like I could go and do something else […] And I hate video games.</p>
</blockquote>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/think-you-might-be-dating-a-vulnerable-narcissist-look-out-for-these-red-flags-205565">Think you might be dating a 'vulnerable narcissist'? Look out for these red flags</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>6 red flags that suggest escalation</h2>
<p>Increasingly problematic (but still difficult to see) behaviours include: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>framing the relationship as unique or fated, such as saying the partner is the only person who truly understands them and nobody else could ever “love you like I do” </p></li>
<li><p>isolating a partner by making it difficult for them to spend time with others </p></li>
<li><p>assuming sexual activity will happen because “they are in a relationship”</p></li>
<li><p>framing feelings of jealousy as evidence of love</p></li>
<li><p>“suggesting” how they should dress or look or encouraging exercise or diet changes </p></li>
<li><p>insults passed off as “just a joke”.</p></li>
</ol>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547112/original/file-20230908-17-gz8i1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="teen couple sits together on pier near water" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547112/original/file-20230908-17-gz8i1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547112/original/file-20230908-17-gz8i1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547112/original/file-20230908-17-gz8i1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547112/original/file-20230908-17-gz8i1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547112/original/file-20230908-17-gz8i1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547112/original/file-20230908-17-gz8i1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547112/original/file-20230908-17-gz8i1l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Wanting to spend lots of time together is normal in a loving relationship. But patterns of control are not.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/holidays-vacation-love-people-concept-happy-572926015">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/i-couldnt-escape-i-wasnt-entirely-sure-i-wanted-to-confusing-messages-about-consent-in-young-adult-fantasy-fiction-156961">'I couldn’t escape. I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted to': confusing messages about consent in young adult fantasy fiction</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>How can you help?</h2>
<p><a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/2mIMCL7rNltR83rxJc5_OOF?domain=academic.oup.com">Research shows</a> parents are in a unique position to support teens to foster healthy relationships. Interviewee Addison was among those asking for guidance:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Anybody that can see the relationship [has] red flags. Anybody that is worried for me, I want them to tell me.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Safe and reliable adults can act as role models, ensure safety, involve professionals and empower teens to build safe and healthy relationships.</p>
<p>We can do this by building trusting, open relationships with the teens in our lives, giving them a chance to talk and listening without judgement. If your teenager does not want to talk to you, help them find another person to talk to instead. It’s important to remember they may not respond the way we hope, but providing support and talking about relationships <a href="https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/C6LCCMwv0mfqmJ1KQUNkx6d?domain=journals.sagepub.com">can decrease the risk</a> of them ending up in an abusive relationship.</p>
<p>And we need a national plan to prevent and respond to teen intimate partner violence. It is not the responsibility of teens or their families to solve this issue. </p>
<hr>
<p><em>If you suspect your teen is in an abusive relationship, contact 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) for advice and information. If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, contact 000.</em></p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/stuck-in-a-talking-stage-or-situationship-how-young-people-can-get-more-out-of-modern-love-200914">Stuck in a 'talking stage' or 'situationship'? How young people can get more out of modern love</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212536/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anglicare Tasmania funded the original research project where data for this article was collected.</span></em></p>Teenagers are experiencing intimate partner violence and abuse that is putting their lives in danger. And they want help from others to spot the early warning signs.Carmel Hobbs, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2122432023-09-10T13:04:16Z2023-09-10T13:04:16ZCanada’s lack of recognition for gender-based violence is putting disaster survivors at risk<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/546717/original/file-20230906-29-yolnrr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=58%2C0%2C2938%2C1999&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Evidence suggests gender-based violence increases during disasters and in the years that follow.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/canadas-lack-of-recognition-for-gender-based-violence-is-putting-disaster-survivors-at-risk" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Canada has experienced an <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/here-s-a-look-at-what-s-happened-in-canada-s-record-breaking-wildfire-season-so-far-1.6512161">unprecedented wildfire season in 2023</a>. People’s experiences with any disaster event are influenced by social- and place-based vulnerabilities. For example, where you live affects your exposure to different hazards including wildfires and floods. </p>
<p>Pre-existing <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781420078572/social-vulnerability-disasters-deborah-thomas-brenda-phillips-lynn-blinn-pike-alice-fothergill">social vulnerabilities contribute to some populations having disproportionate impacts from these events</a>, in both the short and long term. Social vulnerability factors that have a demonstrated effect on people’s experience with disasters include income, health, disability, age, race, and gender. These factors also intersect in ways that increase vulnerability for certain populations. </p>
<p>Evidence suggests <a href="https://oxfordre.com/naturalhazardscience/display/10.1093/acrefore/9780199389407.001.0001/acrefore-9780199389407-e-390">gender-based violence increases during disasters</a> and in the years that follow. Further, the risk for <a href="https://journals.gre.ac.uk/index.php/gswr/article/download/1088/pdf">women</a> and <a href="https://genderanddisaster.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Identifying-the-experiences-and-needs-of-LGBTI-emergencies-FINAL.pdf">LGBTQI populations</a> is heightened when sheltering in place or evacuation from a community is required. </p>
<p>Evidence of gender-based violence during and after disasters can be reflected in increased calls from women to police and domestic violence helplines. However, it is estimated that <a href="https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/csj-sjc/ccs-ajc/rr06_vic2/p3_4.html">78 per cent of cases of sexual assault</a> in Canada are not reported for a variety of reasons. </p>
<p>It is important to recognize that social vulnerabilities are not inherent individual traits, rather <a href="https://hal.science/hal-02001407/document">vulnerability stems from historic inequities</a> over time that impact access to resources and marginalize people. </p>
<p>Government preparedness for and responses to disasters must consider and address how social vulnerabilities increase disaster risk and adverse outcomes for some populations.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547287/original/file-20230908-37766-ktrx5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man and woman in a kitchen arguing." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547287/original/file-20230908-37766-ktrx5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547287/original/file-20230908-37766-ktrx5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547287/original/file-20230908-37766-ktrx5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547287/original/file-20230908-37766-ktrx5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547287/original/file-20230908-37766-ktrx5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547287/original/file-20230908-37766-ktrx5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547287/original/file-20230908-37766-ktrx5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Supports like counselling centres, women’s shelters and sexual assault centres can be disrupted during a disaster.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Gaps in emergency management planning</h2>
<p>My research examines how social vulnerabilities, gender and gender-based violence are addressed in government plans for responding to disasters and pandemics. <a href="https://canadianwomen.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Recognition-of-the-Gendered-Impacts-of-Disasters-EN-1.pdf">In my research</a>, I found that federal, provincial, territorial and local government emergency management plans in Canada acknowledge how social vulnerabilities contribute to the differential impacts of hazard events for households and communities. </p>
<p>Importantly, the federal government recently published two reports examining how social vulnerability contributes to disaster risk: the <a href="https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/mrgnc-mngmnt/ntnl-rsk-prfl/index-en.aspx#s2">National Risk Profile</a> and the report on <a href="https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2022/rncan-nrcan/m183-2/M183-2-8902-eng.pdf">Social Vulnerability to Natural Hazards in Canada</a>. </p>
<p>However, my research also found these reports and plans do not address how gender influences the direct and indirect impacts of disasters, including the <a href="https://theconversation.com/domestic-violence-will-spike-in-the-bushfire-aftermath-and-governments-can-no-longer-ignore-it-127018">increase in gender-based violence during and following disasters</a>. </p>
<p>While federal, provincial and territorial governments have made <a href="https://women-gender-equality.canada.ca/en/gender-results-framework.html">commitments to addressing gender inequities</a> and the use of <a href="https://women-gender-equality.canada.ca/en/gender-based-analysis-plus/government-approach.html">gender-based analysis tools such as GBA+</a>, I found limited reference or commitment to the use of these tools. </p>
<p>GBA+ tools examine how gender intersects with other identity factors, such as age, ethnicity and income to differentiate experiences of women, men and gender diverse populations. </p>
<p>Public Safety Canada’s <a href="https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/dprtmntl-pln-2023-24/index-en.aspx">Departmental Plan</a> references GBA+ when addressing emergency management. However, the plans address social vulnerability more generally and no commitments are made to address gender specifically.</p>
<p>The only identified government funded report addressing gender and disaster in the Canadian context was a <a href="https://wrd.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/2021-11/9457_9457GenderMainstreamingCanada1.pdf">2008 report</a> by the Public Health Agency of Canada.</p>
<p>The federal and some but not all provincial and territorial governments took <a href="https://canadianwomen.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/FPT-Govt-Actions-to-Address-GBV-EN.pdf">actions during the pandemic</a> to address the increase in gender-based violence. However, there has been no concerted effort by Canadian governments to address the gendered impacts of disasters more generally.</p>
<h2>Gender-based violence and disasters</h2>
<p>There is an established <a href="https://genderanddisaster.com.au/research/">body of research</a> on gender-based violence during Australian bushfires. Researchers found <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260517696876">domestic violence occurred</a> in households where a woman had previously experienced violence, as well as in households were there had been stable non-violent relationships. </p>
<p>Further, those experiencing violence noted an increase of the severity of the violence following the disasters. These same patterns were noted in the pandemic in Canada.</p>
<p>The Australian research also found women’s unemployment or homelessness during a disaster was exploited by men who return under the guise of offering assistance. In other instances, men’s behaviour during disaster was excused by counsellors or police because of the stresses brought on by a disaster. The dismissal of violence in the context of a disaster harms women.</p>
<p>Another concern is that supports like counselling centres, women’s shelters and <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Catherine-Carter-Snell/publication/359635464_Gaps_in_Sexual_Assault_Prevention_in_Natural_Disasters/links/6245fbba8068956f3c5c762b/Gaps-in-Sexual-Assault-Prevention-in-Natural-Disasters.pdf">sexual assault centres</a> can be disrupted during a disaster. In the recent evacuation of Yellowknife, all these services would likely have been impacted. Further, communication infrastructure is also impacted by disasters, which can limit the ability to call for help. </p>
<p>The Canadian Women’s Foundation recently supported the <a href="https://canadianwomen.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Service-Continuity-Guidelines-for-the-GBV-Sector-EN.pdf">development of guidance to help these organizations</a> prepare for service disruptions in the event of a disaster.</p>
<h2>A call to action</h2>
<p>We have a <a href="https://philpapers.org/rec/ZACTEO-3">moral and ethical imperative</a> to address the inequitable effects of disasters within society. </p>
<p>Recommendations on how to address the gendered impacts of disasters, including gender-based violence, include <a href="https://interagencystandingcommittee.org/system/files/2018-iasc_gender_handbook_for_humanitarian_action_eng_0.pdf">The Gender Handbook for Humanitarian Action</a>, <a href="https://gbvguidelines.org/en/">Guidelines for Integrating Gender-Based Violence Interventions in Humanitarian Action</a>, the Red Cross <a href="https://www.ifrc.org/sites/default/files/Minimum-standards-for-protection-gender-and-inclusion-in-emergencies-LR.pdf">Minimum Standard Commitments to Gender and Diversity in Emergency Programming</a> and the UN’s <a href="https://www.unfpa.org/featured-publication/gbvie-standards">Minimum Standards for Prevention and Response to Gender-based Violence in Emergencies</a>. </p>
<p>Australia has made significant investments in addressing <a href="https://genderanddisaster.com.au/">the gendered impacts of disasters</a>. Their process offers an example of what is needed in Canada to advance gender and disaster practice. </p>
<p>The mandate to address <a href="https://women-gender-equality.canada.ca/en.html">gender inequities in Canada is already in place</a>, as are <a href="https://women-gender-equality.canada.ca/en/gender-based-violence.html">plans to address gender-based violence</a>. There is an urgent imperative to bring the work addressing gender-based inequity and violence into emergency management practice. These efforts need to be led by all orders of government and integrated into their <a href="https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/2022-ems-ctn-pln/index-en.aspx">action plans for improving emergency management practices</a> in Canada.</p>
<p>Experts on the gendered impacts of disasters must become part of the emergency response effort. In addition to integrating gender analysis in planning activities, rapid gender analysis needs to be conducted at the outset of a disaster and throughout the recovery period.</p>
<p>Further, emergency management organizations need to work closely with counselling centres, women’s shelters and sexual assault services to ensure they have the capacity to respond to disasters. These organizations must be recognized as an essential service when disasters occur.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212243/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Research funding recieved from the Canadian Women's Foundation.</span></em></p>Research shows gender-based violence increases in the aftermath of disasters. Governments must incorporate ways of addressing it into their disaster response plans.Jean Slick, Professor, Disaster and Emergency Management, Royal Roads UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2123262023-09-04T17:13:07Z2023-09-04T17:13:07ZPoor police practices are endangering 2SLGBTQ+ survivors of intimate partner violence<iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/poor-police-practices-are-endangering-2slgbtq-survivors-of-intimate-partner-violence" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Intimate partner violence is a prevalent and growing issue in Canada. According to <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221019/dq221019c-eng.htm">Statistics Canada</a>, there were 114,132 police-reported victims of intimate partner violence in 2021, marking the seventh consecutive year of increased rates of violence.</p>
<p><a href="https://women-gender-equality.canada.ca/en/gender-based-violence/intimate-partner-violence.html">Intimate partner violence</a> refers to harmful behaviours perpetrated by a current or former partner over another. This can include physical, sexual, emotional or financial abuse and <a href="https://lukesplace.ca/coercive-control/">coercive control</a>. </p>
<p>The issue is particularly significant in the Canadian Prairies, where <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/210302/dq210302d-eng.htm">rates of police-reported intimate partner violence are consistently highest</a>. However, these rates do not reflect the pervasive nature of this issue, as approximately <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/85-002-x/2018001/article/54893-eng.pdf">seven out of 10 incidents of intimate partner violence are never reported to police</a>.</p>
<h2>Intimate partner violence in 2SLGBTQ+ communities</h2>
<p>Considerably less is known about intimate partner violence in 2SLGBTQ+ relationships. This is because less research has focused on 2SLGBTQ+ experiences. In fact, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038656">researchers have noted</a> that only three per cent of studies between 1999 and 2013 addressed intimate partner violence in 2SLGBTQ+ relationships.</p>
<p>The data that is avaialable suggests that it is a <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-65263681">prevalent issue</a> in 2SLGBTQ+ communities. <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/85-002-x/2021001/article/00005-eng.htm">Statistics Canada</a> estimates that two-thirds of sexual minority women experience intimate partner violence in their lifetime. </p>
<p>Scholars even suggest that rates of intimate partner violence in 2SLGBTQ+ communities are equal to, or higher than, heterosexual relationships. <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19319742/">Research has found</a> abusive dynamics in one-quarter to one-half of same-sex relationships. </p>
<p>Police have historically failed to protect 2SLGBTQ+ communities from harm. In fact, as the enforcers of anti-LGBTQ laws in the 20th century, police have actively participated in the oppression of 2SLGBTQ+ communities. </p>
<p>Tensions between police and 2SLGBTQ+ communities notably reached a turning point during the <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/gay-rights/the-stonewall-riots#stonewall-s-legacy">Stonewall Uprising in 1969</a>. The six-day protest was triggered by a police raid at the Stonewall Inn in New York City and served as a driving force for the LGBTQ+ rights movement. </p>
<p>Many advancements and milestones have been achieved in the LGBTQ+ rights movement since the uprising, but the relationship between police and 2SLGBTQ+ communities remains strained. This is largely because poor police practices continue today, with police failing to protect 2SLGBTQ+ survivors from harm — often from intimate partners.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.umanitoba.ca/sites/resolve/files/2022-10/2SLGBTQ%2B%20IPV%20Final%20Report%20October%2014%202022.pdf">Our research</a> examined how 2SLGBTQ+ communities seek help when experiencing intimate partner violence in the Canadian Prairies. We found that participants’ perceptions and experiences of dealing with police were negative. Police responses ranged from not taking the cases seriously to engaging in discriminatory behaviours towards 2SLGBTQ+ survivors.</p>
<h2>Survivor experiences with police</h2>
<p>As part of our study, we interviewed 47 2SLGBTQ+ survivors of intimate partner violence across the Canadian Prairies about their experiences. A range of gender identities and sexual orientations were represented including Two-Spirit, transgender, non-binary, genderfluid, gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual and asexual. Survivors ranged in age from 19 to 67 years old. </p>
<p>Around 55 per cent were of White/European ancestry, 17 per cent were Indigenous, 15 per cent were of mixed ancestry, six per cent were Black and four per cent were Asian. Almost half (47 per cent) had a mental or physical disability or chronic health condition.</p>
<p>Despite historical harms, many survivors described reaching out to police for help. However, police responses towards them ranged from disinterest at best to discriminatory at worst. While a few survivors reported positive encounters with police, these were reported much less frequently.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">A video about the 1981 Toronto Police raids that targeted gay men. In 2016, the Toronto Police Service apologized for the raids. Police have historically failed to protect 2SLGBTQ+ communities from harm.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Many survivors told us they were not taken seriously when seeking police assistance. This was particularly true for lesbian survivors, who stated that police brushed off abusive incidents as a “catfight” or disagreement “between friends.”</p>
<p>This was echoed by survivors in other 2SLGBTQ+ communities, who felt the disdain they experienced from police invalidated their relationships and severity of abuse they experienced. Overall, misconceptions surrounding what abuse looks like in 2SLGBTQ+ communities were common in police responses.</p>
<p>Other survivors described blatant discrimination at the hands of police, including ridicule and dehumanizing rhetoric on account of their 2SLGBTQ+ identities. Transgender survivors in particular discussed instances of being misgendered, even after repeated attempts to express their proper name and desired pronouns. Discrimination was amplified for survivors with multiple marginalized identities, particularly those from racialized groups.</p>
<h2>Changing harmful practices</h2>
<p>Current policing practices must be addressed to improve responses to intimate partner violence in 2SLGBTQ+ communities, <a href="https://www.hrc.org/news/police-accountability-is-a-bedrock-issue-for-the-lgbtq-community">including demanding more accountability from police</a>. </p>
<p>The survivors we interviewed discussed several recommendations for tackling the issue, beginning with changing police attitudes and behaviours towards 2SLGBTQ+ communities. Specific changes include respecting 2SLGBTQ+ identities and pronouns, validating 2SLGBTQ+ relationships and taking intimate partner violence in 2SLGBTQ+ relationships seriously.</p>
<p>The need for larger systemic change within policing was also discussed. An important step towards systemic change involves committing to in-depth and long-term training to better inform interactions with 2SLGBTQ+ survivors.</p>
<p>Training should be comprehensive and address problematic preconceptions that downplay or dismiss the issue. Holding police accountable for not adequately responding to intimate partner violence within these systems was also noted as crucial to ensuring that training is put into practice.</p>
<p>Finally, increasing the diversity of justice system staff was also recommended. Survivors specifically underscored the importance of having more 2SLGBTQ+ representation in policing. Additionally, having social worker liaisons responding to calls alongside police officers was recommended to better assess and address intimate partner violence.</p>
<p>Violence of all kinds affects people of every gender identity and sexual orientation. However, 2SLGBTQ+ survivors can experience different forms of violence and face additional challenges accessing assistance and support. Police must do better to gain the trust and confidence from 2SLGBTQ+ communities. All survivors of violence, regardless of gender identity and sexual orientation, have the right to safety and protection, including from the police.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212326/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kendra Nixon receives funding from the PrairieAction Foundation and research support from community partners Rainbow Resource Centre, OUTSaskatoon and Sagesse.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ashley Haller receives funding from the PrairieAction Foundation and research support from community partners Rainbow Resource Centre, OUTSaskatoon and Sagesse. </span></em></p>Research finds that police officers engage in discriminatory behaviours towards 2SLGBTQ+ survivors of intimate partner violence.Kendra Nixon, Professor, Faculty of Social Work & Director, RESOLVE (Research and Education for Solutions to Violence and Abuse), University of ManitobaAshley Haller, Research Technician at RESOLVE (Research and Education for Solutions to Violence and Abuse), University of ManitobaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2116062023-08-16T06:30:41Z2023-08-16T06:30:41ZThe government has released its action plans to end violence against women and children. Will they be enough?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542945/original/file-20230816-25-93f0bf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Australian government has today released the <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/first-action-plan-2023-2027">First Action Plan 2023-2027</a> and the <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-action-plan-2023-2025">Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Action Plan</a> under the <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children-2022-2032">National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032</a>. These long-awaited plans detail what the Commonwealth, state and territory governments have agreed to do to progress their ambitious target to eliminate domestic, family and sexual violence. </p>
<p>In the first 32 weeks of 2023 alone, 44 women have been killed allegedly by violence. These action plans come at a critical time when advocates, academics and practitioners <a href="https://lens.monash.edu/@politics-society/2023/07/27/1386002/violence-against-women-more-deaths-little-action">have been calling for</a> more funding and clearer actions to counter domestic, family and sexual violence. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-new-national-plan-aims-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children-in-one-generation-can-it-succeed-192497">A new national plan aims to end violence against women and children 'in one generation'. Can it succeed?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<h2>What are the action plans?</h2>
<p>The action plans set out the national and state-based commitments across prevention, early intervention, response, recovery and healing. </p>
<p>The purpose of the <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/first-action-plan-2023-2027">first action plan</a> is to </p>
<blockquote>
<p>understand what actions governments are taking to end gender-based violence, what outcomes the actions and activities aim to achieve, and the targets we are working towards.</p>
</blockquote>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1691661583242674211"}"></div></p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-action-plan-2023-2025">Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Action Plan</a> is the first dedicated plan to address violence against women and children in First Nations communities. </p>
<p>It was developed with the <a href="https://www.niaa.gov.au/indigenous-affairs/closing-gap/implementation-measures/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-advisory-council-family-domestic-and-sexual-violence-advisory-council">Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Council</a> and in consultation with First Nations communities. It provides a road map for addressing the disproportionately high rates of violence First Nations women and children experience.</p>
<h2>What commitments have been made?</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/first-action-plan-2023-2027">first action plan</a> commits to implementing <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/08_2023/np-activities.pdf">ten actions</a>. </p>
<p>It includes education and training across justice, specialist and mainstream workforces, as well as advancing gender equality. </p>
<p>Specific actions outlined in the first action plan include:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>funding to support increased education and training on family, domestic and sexual violence for community mainstream workers, health professionals and the justice sector</p></li>
<li><p>establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Men’s Advisory Body to provide advice and leadership on issues such as family violence, gender equality, programs and services for men</p></li>
<li><p>improving access to short-term, medium-term and long-term housing for women and children experiencing violence</p></li>
<li><p>improving actions to prevent and address sexual violence and harassment in all settings</p></li>
<li><p>improving police responses and the justice system to better support victim-survivors by providing trauma-informed, culturally safe supports that promote safety and wellbeing. This also includes holding people who choose to use violence to account.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>One of the notable features of the <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children-2022-2032">national plan</a> is its focus on recovery and healing. The first action plan commits to enhancing trauma-informed supports and exploring new models of recovery for victim-survivors. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children-2022-2032">national plan</a> also includes an acknowledgement of children and young people as victim-survivors in their own right. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/first-action-plan-2023-2027">first action plan</a> commits to developing and implementing age-appropriate, culturally safe programs across all four domains of prevention, early intervention, response, recovery and healing. These will be informed by children and young people. </p>
<p>While the detail of how this will be achieved is unclear, the commitment is critical. <a href="https://theconversation.com/to-end-gender-based-violence-in-one-generation-we-must-fix-how-the-system-responds-to-children-and-young-people-192839">As we have noted previously</a>, ending gender-based violence in one generation requires a focus on delivering improved outcomes with transformational results for the next generation. </p>
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<h2>How will success be measured?</h2>
<p>One of <a href="https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/podcast/the-empty-plan-end-violence-against-women">the key criticisms</a> of the former <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/women/programs-services/reducing-violence/the-national-plan-to-reduce-violence-against-women-and-their-children-2010-2022">national plan</a> was that it didn’t include any measures to track progress over its ten-year life span. </p>
<p>Notably, the evaluation of the former plan was never released publicly. This is a significant failing in public accountability for efforts to reduce violence against women and children.</p>
<p>A key finding from <a href="https://bridges.monash.edu/articles/report/National_Plan_Stakeholder_Consultation_Final_Report/20304420">the consultations</a> was the emphasis <a href="https://bridges.monash.edu/articles/report/National_Plan_Stakeholder_Consultation_Final_Report/20304420">from stakeholders</a> and <a href="https://www.monash.edu/arts/gender-and-family-violence/research-and-projects/national-plan-victim-survivor-advocates-consultation-project">victim-survivors</a> that targets be included in this national plan. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.monash.edu/arts/gender-and-family-violence/research-and-projects/national-plan-victim-survivor-advocates-consultation-project">first action plan</a> is accompanied by an <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/outcomes-framework-2023-2032">outcomes framework</a> that includes targets to reduce violence. It also promises a future measurement plan, to be released in early 2024. </p>
<p>Careful attention and urgency in developing this measurement plan are critical. The six national targets outlined in the <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/first-action-plan-2023-2027">first action plan</a> focus on: </p>
<ul>
<li>reducing the prevalence of intimate partner homicide </li>
<li>improving community knowledge of what constitutes domestic, family and sexual violence</li>
<li>improving community attitudes. </li>
</ul>
<p>Notably, this <a href="https://www.monash.edu/arts/gender-and-family-violence/research-and-projects/national-plan-victim-survivor-advocates-consultation-project">action plan</a> specifies a commitment to a 25% annual reduction in female victims of intimate partner homicide. No justification is included for aiming for this specific level of reduction. </p>
<p>The action plan also recognises that attitudinal change is key to eliminating violence. It includes several targets related to shifting community attitudes. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/first-action-plan-2023-2027">first action plan</a> commits to annual reporting of progress. This includes tracking the implementation of the actions contained in the two action plans. This will be a much-needed check, and ensures accountability and transparency over the life of both action plans. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/to-end-gender-based-violence-in-one-generation-we-must-fix-how-the-system-responds-to-children-and-young-people-192839">To end gender-based violence in one generation, we must fix how the system responds to children and young people</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What is needed now to ensure effective change and a reduction of violence?</h2>
<p>These actions plans represent a much-needed next step in realising the objectives of the <a href="https://www.dss.gov.au/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children/the-national-plan-to-end-violence-against-women-and-children-2022-2032">national plan</a>. Achieving the set targets will require a significant increase in urgency and funding. </p>
<p>This government has made an unprecedented funding commitment of $2.3 billion over the 2022-23 and 2023-24 budgets to address women’s safety and support delivery of these action plans. </p>
<p>While this sounds impressive, it is not commensurate with the scale of the crisis of domestic, family and sexual violence in Australia. Increased funding to accelerate delivery of these action plans is urgently needed. </p>
<p>It is also critical that the reforms and work in this space are not siloed: housing, economic security and childcare are critical aspects of securing women’s safety. This is a whole-of-government project, and must be led in this way.</p>
<p>The way forward must be driven by a commitment to safety and recognising that we need to move urgently on the actions in the plans. They cannot simply be a political tool: they are the result of extensive consultation across Australia involving experts, advocates and victim-survivors. </p>
<p>This work must accelerate now. Each action may not necessarily work. Monitoring is needed to understand what works and for whom. </p>
<p>Agility is also required to ensure efforts can be tailored to maximise the potential for ending domestic, family and sexual violence in one generation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211606/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kate has received funding for family violence related research from the Australian Research Council, Australian Institute of Criminology, Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety, the Victorian Government and the Department of Social Services. In 2021 Kate led the National Plan Stakeholder and Victim-Survivor Advocates Consultation Projects. This piece is written by Kate Fitz-Gibbon in her capacity as Director of the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre and is wholly independent of Kate Fitz-Gibbon’s role as Chair of Respect Victoria.
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marie Segrave receives funding from the Australian Research Council and Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Silke Meyer has received funding for domestic and family violence related research from the Australian Institute of Criminology, Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety, the Queensland Government and the Department of Social Services. In 2021 Silke co-led led the National Plan Stakeholder Consultation Project.</span></em></p>While the actions outlined in the plans are admirable, achieving the set targets will require a significant increase in urgency and funding.Kate Fitz-Gibbon, Director, Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre; Professor of Social Sciences, Faculty of Arts, Monash UniversityMarie Segrave, Associate Professor, Criminology, Monash UniversitySilke Meyer, Professor of Social Work; Leneen Forde Chair in Child & Family Research, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2089862023-08-07T11:07:17Z2023-08-07T11:07:17ZLinking police and healthcare data could help better identify domestic abuse – new research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/538035/original/file-20230718-19-w6ftpx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4608%2C3428&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Healthcare professionals can play a vital role in identifying and helping people who are experiencing domestic abuse.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/stop-violence-against-womensexual-abuse-human-1465291778">HTWE/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Identifying domestic abuse victims earlier could help to reduce future emergency medical admissions. <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(23)00126-3/fulltext">Our new research</a> shows how this could be done before a victim even involves the police by connecting information gathered by the police and hospitals.</p>
<p>Our study showed that many victims of domestic abuse often visit accident and emergency departments before the police get involved. This means that healthcare professionals can play a crucial role in identifying and helping people who are experiencing abuse.</p>
<p>We combined data from the police with data from GPs and accident and emergency hospital admissions. We focused on residents in the South Wales Police catchment area who had experienced domestic abuse between August 2015 and March 2020, and who were given a public protection notification (PPN). This is a document that records safeguarding concerns about adults or children.</p>
<p>Connecting this data with health information gives a wide view of how domestic abuse affects people’s health. Health records are kept in a secure database called the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank. </p>
<p>This provides access to different kinds of information, such as records from doctors’ visits, hospital stays, accident and emergency visits, and death records. All data in the databank is anonymous, ensuring that individuals cannot be identified.</p>
<p>Using mathematical models, we then identified the factors that increased the risk of negative outcomes, such as hospital and A&E admissions or death within 12 months of the PPN.</p>
<h2>What we found</h2>
<p>Of the 8,709 people who experienced domestic abuse, 71.8% were women. Within a year of experiencing abuse, 3,544 of the victims had negative outcomes, such as an A&E admission, while there were 48 deaths.</p>
<p>We also found that certain factors increased the likelihood of negative outcomes. These included being younger, having multiple incidents of abuse, getting injured during the abuse, being assessed as high-risk, being referred to other agencies, having a history of violence, experiencing attempted strangulation, or being pregnant.</p>
<p>Pregnant victims, in particular, faced more risks, which affected their own health and the health of their babies. Certain factors like smoking, obstetric issues and taking specific medications (like antidepressants and antibiotics) increased the risk of having a negative outcome after experiencing domestic abuse.</p>
<p>By studying different patterns, we could predict how severe the cases of domestic abuse were in terms of risk. For example, victims who had frequent interactions with the police were at higher risk.</p>
<p>However, victims who had conflicts related to child contact had a lower risk of experiencing negative outcomes. This is because the perpetrator might not be living with the victim. </p>
<h2>What are the implications?</h2>
<p>Our findings show the importance of considering a victim’s health history in identifying domestic abuse. Identifying certain patterns could lead to earlier interventions.</p>
<p>It is crucial for different organisations to work together and share information to identify and help vulnerable individuals effectively. Identifying specific risk factors, like being younger or having a history of violence, could help identify victims more effectively. This would include investigating previous visits to the hospital, conducting thorough assessments for pregnant victims who are at high risk and connecting different pieces of information.</p>
<p>These measures could help prevent further victimisation and ensure that people receive the right support and resources.</p>
<p>Our research highlights the importance of healthcare settings, especially emergency departments, in identifying and addressing domestic abuse. Training programmes could help emergency department staff identify potential cases of domestic abuse, even if the victim does not explicitly disclose the abuse. </p>
<p>By connecting different sources of information and identifying people at high risk, health professionals could take necessary actions and refer victims to support services.</p>
<p>Our study looked at situations where abuse was officially reported, so victims who did not report it were not included. </p>
<p>We did not include cases where women went to the emergency room for obstetric reasons either. This means that the impact of domestic abuse during pregnancy may be underestimated in our findings.</p>
<p>In future, further research should be undertaken to validate the findings of this study in different settings and populations. It would also be helpful to look at information from other sources, such as social services and housing records, to get a better picture of the factors that contribute to domestic abuse and its consequences.</p>
<h2>Protecting privacy</h2>
<p>While linking data from different organisations can be helpful for research, it is also important to protect people’s privacy. If we want to link data at a national level for purposes other than research, we would need a public consultation on what data is shared and to discuss how people’s privacy would be protected. </p>
<p>This is important because if people were afraid that their data would be shared with the police, they might not seek help from emergency services. When victims can be encouraged to talk, however, this study underlines the importance of training A&E staff to recognise and address potential cases of abuse.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/208986/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Natasha Kennedy wishes to thank Benjamin Rowe from South Wales Police for his input.
This research was funded by the National Institute for Health Research, Public Health Research Board (reference number NIHR133680: Unlocking Data to Inform Public Health Policy and Practice).
The study was also supported by Health Care Research Wales through the National Centre for Population Health and Wellbeing Research, supported by ESRC through Administrative Data Research Wales, and received infrastructure support through Health Data Research UK.
This study makes use of anonymised data held in the SAIL databank. We would like to acknowledge all the data providers who make anonymised data available for research.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amrita Bandyopadhyay wishes to thank Benjamin Rowe from South Wales Police for his input.
This research was funded by the National Institute for Health Research, Public Health Research Board (reference number NIHR133680: Unlocking Data to Inform Public Health Policy and Practice).
The study was also supported by Health Care Research Wales through the National Centre for Population Health and Wellbeing Research, supported by ESRC through Administrative Data Research Wales, and received infrastructure support through Health Data Research UK.
This study makes use of anonymised data held in the SAIL databank. We would like to acknowledge all the data providers who make anonymised data available for research.</span></em></p>New research linking police and healthcare data shows that victims of domestic abuse are detectable before the involvement of the police.Natasha Kennedy, Senior research officer and data scientist, Swansea UniversityAmrita Bandyopadhyay, Research Officer and Data Scientist at the National Centre for Population Health and Wellbeing Research, Swansea UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.