If this post brings up any issues for you, or if you just feel like you need to speak to someone, please call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – the national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service. It doesn’t matter where you live, they will take your call and, if need be, refer you to a service closer to home.
It’s been three days since the return of ABC’s You Can’t Ask That, a series which seeks to shed light on marginalised groups in our country, raise awareness and change the general public perceptions of these groups.
The series jumps straight back into our living rooms with a ‘Domestic and Family Violence’ themed episode.
The episode is raw, respectful, not sensationalised, and it is truly powerful. It is very hard to watch, and intensely confronting at different times.
Women and violence: The hidden numbers:
I am a participant in this episode. I am a family violence victim.
If you think this problem happens to other people, people you don’t know, people that don’t live near you, people that don’t behave like you, or people that are different to you and not connected to you… you are wrong. I am a statistic, I am one of the “one in four” women in our country to experience this.
I am someone’s sister, friend, co-worker and mother. It was not drug nor alcohol induced. It was a man, that I loved, that I should have been able to trust, that hurt me.
It is four years since I left, and it has taken that time for me to be in a position to be able to share my story in a public way like this.
We are living in an age where we dedicate four nights a week to a reality television series following people ‘marrying strangers'.
Can we commit 30 mins out of our lives to watch this episode which has the power to help our country confront this issue head on? This is the type of reality television we really need to embrace.
Be part of the solution, watch the episode, open your heart to the hurts of victims.
I know we can do better. We can get better. We can work together for change.
If you missed watching the episode this week, you can watch it on iView here.
If you or someone you care about is living with family violence please call safe steps 24/7 Family Violence Response Line on 1800 015 188 or visit www.safesteps.org.au for further information.
Top Comments
"Somebody actually cares what's happening to my children. Somebody actually cares what's happening to me."
THE takeaway is that if you actually care about something you will DO something about it, not just talk about it. Because talk is sooooo cheap.
'In 2018, the budget invested $18.2 million to frontline family violence services and to increasing national awareness – a figure that simply is not enough.
In the same year, they investment $1.2 billion into preventing terrorism – which is incredibly important, but offers an interesting contrast.'
https://www.mamamia.com.au/...
2019 budget:
Terrorists – $570 million boost for national security agencies and $328 million to fund prevention, response and recovery initiatives
IF we called it 'CRIME DOMESTIC' would more money be allocated to stopping the real and present danger now and not over the next three years for a tenth of what 'CRIME FOREIGN' gets?
https://www.theguardian.com...
Now thats reality tv one can watch