A WAGGA academic has urged local men to ditch sexist jokes and switch off “degrading” pornography in a bid to help quell the city’s domestic violence epidemic.
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Speaking on White Ribbon Day, Dr Andreia Schineanu from CSU’s School of Humanities and Social Sciences said as the main perpetrators of domestic violence, men had to take responsibility for its alarming incidence in Wagga.
She said male role models were critical in shifting social attitudes, urging Wagga men to lead from the front in the home and in the community.
“Most domestic violence is perpetrated by men so it is up to men to end it,” she said.
“Violence starts in the home and it must end in the home too - men must lead by example and treat their partner, mother, sisters and daughters with respect.”
She suggested men could start by confronting sexist jokes and comments and refusing to watch material that portrays women in a sexually degrading or violent manner.
Dr Schineanu is currently working with Wagga Women’s Health Centre on a landmark project aimed at finding out precisely how prevalent domestic violence is in the city.
Wagga Police superintendent Bob Noble has a better idea than most of how deeply domestic violence runs in the community.
“I can confidently say more than 50 per cent of police time is dedicated to it,” Superintendent Noble said.
“It’s a staggering amount of man hours being ploughed into it.
“For every hour it takes (to police it), we’re not able to do other things, like investigate property offences, drug offences and other things.”
Dr Schineanu’s project will involve the all-male Wollundry Rotary Club and Kapooka Army Recruitment Training Centre.
It aims to increase awareness of the “silent epidemic” and come up with a whole-of-community response to lessening its impact.
Dr Schineanu said local voices could be just as effective in changing community attitudes as celebrities.
“White Ribbon Day has some wonderful celebrity ambassadors but men in normal towns, living everyday lives, can help change community beliefs towards violence,” Dr Schineanu said.
“Speaking up against violence in your own community can have a powerful effect to change the attitudes and social norms that support and perpetuate abuse, and can be more powerful than celebrity endorsement.”
According to Dr Schineanu, violence against women is more prevalent than people realise.
“Often we only hear about domestic violence in the news and often it is the most severe cases, such as homicide, so we can feel distanced from it,” she said.
“We think that it will never happen to us and only happens to other people.”