“STOP IT AT THE START”^[1] ‍

by Zoe Wilkinson (Law Clerk - GRIT Legal)

15 Actions We Can Take to Help End Male Violence Against Women*

1.      Acknowledge Australia has a crisis of male violence against women

2.      Learn signs of abuse and how you can help

3.      Call out misogynistic and abusive behaviour

4.      Be a role model for respectful relationships and behaviours

5.      Learn about the 4 key drivers of male violence; controlling, condoning, stereotypes and aggression

6.      Understand consent

7.      If you’re a parent, talk to your kids about consent, bodily autonomy and accountability

8.      Listen to and believe survivors

9.      Stand up against rape culture

10.  Call out victim-blaming

11.  Examine and challenge your own beliefs about how men and women ‘should’ behave

12.  Hold people accountable for their words and actions

13.  Listen to and respect all women, regardless of their background.

14.  At work, champion gender and pay equality

15.  Support women’s independence and decision making in public life

*Adapted from list created by Kon Karapanagiotidis OAM, shared on LinkedIn (Kon Karapanagiotidis OAM on LinkedIn: 20 ACTIONS MEN CAN TAKE TO HELP END MALE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN 1 Learn… | 23 comments)

Violence against women in Australia is a national crisis: seventy-eight (78) women were killed in gender-based violence in 2024 alone.^[2]

It is important to recognise that gender-based violence disproportionately impacts Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.^[3]

The idea for an event to raise awareness about male violence against women was inspired by a display in the store window of Excuse me Katie’s. Created by Kate Kent and Sarah Pollard, the display commemorates the lives of women who were killed by male violence in 2024.

This got me thinking; why aren’t more people talking about the appalling rates of male violence against women in Australia?

So, to promote further conversation, I decided to organise an awareness raising event on Friday 14 March 2025. The event will begin with a walk to remember female victims of male violence and conclude with a cuppa, cookie and an opportunity for meaningful conversations at Excuse Me Katie's.

We all have a role to play in helping to end male violence against women. I hope that this event will start conversations and empower people to enact the 15 actions listed above in their everyday lives.

I’m extremely thankful for the support of Excuse Me Katie’s in hosting and supporting this event, as well as the wonderful local businesses who donated prizes for the raffle.

I’m also very grateful to Ann Cunnningham, Director of GRIT Legal, for generously dedicating her time and resources to help plan the event. Ann was enthusiastic about supporting the event because she believes that “we are advocates and it’s important we use our voices to connect, to educate and to try and lead social change.” Coincidentally, Ann had a similar idea but shelved it, thinking; “I simply don’t have time this year to organise an entire event.” So, she immediately jumped on board to support the event through assisting in its planning, as well as providing funding to ensure all proceeds from the event could be donated to charity.

The charity we decided to donate 100% of proceeds to is ‘Our Watch,’ an independent not-for-profit organisation that aims to support long-lasting change by shifting attitudes and behaviours that drive violence against women.

Ann and I work so well together; it has been fantastic bouncing ideas around and seeing the event come together. We hope everyone who attends the event leaves feeling connected and empowered to continue to have conversations which help to stop violence against women at the start.

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[1] https://www.respect.gov.au/the-campaign/about-the-campaign#:~:text=Stop%20it%20at%20the%20Start%20is%20a%20national,and%20behaviours%20that%20support%20or%20condone%20gender-based%20violence.

[2] Counting Dead Women, Destroy the Joint

[3] The Issue Explained | Respect.gov.au - Violence against women. Let's stop it at the start