Everyone in our community deserves to feel safe, and that’s the message Penrith City Council is spreading during the global campaign, ‘16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence’.
The campaign began on Monday, November 25, and will end on Human Rights Day, December 10.
During the 16-day period, the Civic Centre will be lit up in the colour orange, and there will be a ‘Walk Against Violence’ at the Nepean River on Sunday, December 8.
“It’s all about awareness and getting people on board, and I think the more you have exposure on these things, the more you can create allies,” said local domestic violence survivor and advocate Kyra Quinlivan.
Quinlivan played a role in organising last year’s walk, and she hopes to see new faces this year.
“What I’d like to see on this one is more people involved that aren’t the same services, that aren’t already advocates,” Quinlivan said.
“We need to get more people on board who aren’t already the ones working hard in this space.”
Reported domestic violence incidents in Penrith have increased since last year, and Quinlivan said we need to look at why this is happening and what measures need to be enforced to prevent further occurrences in our community.
“We place a great emphasis on teaching women to identify the red flags and signs of abuse, but so little emphasis on educating men on what is considered abuse,” she said.
“Some men could be completely unaware of how their behaviour can be defined as abusive, and for the cycle to break, we need to be doing more awareness and education on all forms of abuse.”
The media and reporting platforms aren’t helping the case according to Quinlivan, who explained they focus primarily on domestic violence murders.
“It completely minimises the significance of all the forms of DV, such as intimidation, verbal abuse, financial abuse and coercive control, which also has devastating impacts on victims and the community as a whole,” Quinlivan said.
“I feel like by overlooking all the other forms of abuse, it allows perpetrators to believe that these other forms of abuse are acceptable.”
Locals can show their support by meeting at the Blue Tree on Nepean Avenue at 9am on Sunday, December 8, for a 1.8 km walk.
Afterwards, local Rotary clubs will provide a free barbecue breakfast, there will be coffee, live music, interactive activities, and an installation by the Zonta Club.
Find out more at http://www.penrithcity.nsw.gov.au.
Ally Hall
Ally Hall joined the Weekender in 2024, and focuses on entertainment and community stories. She is a graduate of the University of South Australia.