Emma Gierschick OAM’s Post

Every perspective is valuable and important. Particularly on this terrifying issue.

I applaud you Vincent. To be able to articulate yourself so well while your frustration was about to spill over brought me to tears. My wife told me of the recent trend on social media of being asked “would you rather meet a man or a bear in a forest”. I told her I would prefer her and my daughter to meet bears. When you see a bear you know it is a predator it is a part of it’s core nature as a beast. When you see a man you don’t know, you can’t tell what it’s true nature is on face value, what kind of beast is it? A man’s true nature can be revealed instantly, or it may take an hour, a week or years to reveal itself. There will be some men who say “not all men”. Ok, if not all men, then which ones on face value? That’s one facet of the problem. I’m sorry but the time for the “not all men” rhetoric is over. Another part of the problem is the political and judicial system is not working to protect those most vulnerable. As Vincent said the time to keep offenders detained while victims seek safety is now. The time to properly fund and support frontline services is now. There is currently a 30% spike in the deaths of women at the hands of their partner in Australia. How many women need to die to make a nation care and actually do something about it? That’s not a rhetorical question I’m hoping the number is very close to the total we have already reached. I hope we have already reached the number.

We invest in war to the exclusion of anything that is wholesome healthy and Community enhancing. The way that ‘politics’ is conducted is completely out of alignment with what’s important to help people live happy healthy productive lives. The paradigm and the whole structure, model, and attitude of the contemporary political agenda and milieu has to change to a life enhancing, supportive and right action oriented one. It is impossible to rationalise spending hundreds of billions of dollars on submarines to ‘protect’ us decades in the future when public schools are struggling, people are homeless, nutritious food is a luxury, universities are crippled, mental health issues are rising, male violence is omnipresent- we need a massive injection of funds and energy into mending and enhancing the social fabric of our society.

I agree! We have talked, researched, strategised and submitted ourselves silly and yet violence in our society is still a serious issue and there has been no improvement. Why? Because frontline services dealing with the violence directly are not funded or supported. Instead they are having to fight to stay in place in their communities and fighting to have the funding required to do the work needed. How many millions/billions of dollars have been spent on strategies and ‘action’ plans that if directed into services would have saved thousands of families from a life of violence and fear. Let’s put that money into a fund to alllow families and women to escape violence without losing their dignity and having to beg for assistance. How would it feel to know that you had the support of your community and when you needed help you could get it? How would it feel to know that living in fear and violence was not your only option because your community has your back? How would it feel to know every day that your children are safe because you have the support of your community and you are not alone? One fund, access to the fund via community organisations and you are safe! What a simple and novel idea! But instead we make women and families jump through hoops, beg and borrow to access the support and help they need. Our systems are telling us that there is still shame and blame for letting yourself and your children end up in the violence! If the money is spent at the front of the issue on education for our children, our men and our communities, providing on the ground support that is accessible and immediate, getting children out of violent homes where they experience violence as a ‘normal’ part of their lives we may just be able to get ahead of the problem in the next 20 - 30 years. We already know the problems, we already know the answers, we don’t need any more analysis or investigation we just need action that is effective and gets to the people in need.

Completely agree with this sentiment. The funds earmarked for a Royal Commission could have a more immediate and tangible impact if directed towards supporting women and children who urgently need help right now. As we speak, there are families living in cars and in constant fear for their safety that don't have time to wait. As an example, $1 million could provide immediate support to 28,571 children through pre-intervention services such as Treasure Boxes. Let's prioritise action that directly benefits those in need now, before we see numbers rise again. #domesticviolence #ImmediateImpact #southaustralia #familyviolence

Important and valid points for urgent consideration

The drivers behind sexual harassment and sexual assault are the same: Power Control. The circumstances in which the incidents occur may feel starkly different. Analysis shows: - each approach occurs where the perpetrator desires intimate touch - the perpetrator cares not about consent - the perpetrator will likely ignore, diminish or misconstrue the victim’s protests - the perpetrator will overcome their victim whether through seniority or influence in workplaces, educational settings, commerce, sporting or other associations, or where the victim is physically unable to best the force exerted due to drugs, alcohol or physical inequality. So when we discuss sexual attacks - let us be clear. It’s not because the victim wore X, said y, or behaved Z. It’s purely about power and control exerted across a situational spectrum. What are you doing in your legal practice to stop harm and better educate society? #itstopswithus #enough #equalityissafety #equalityislaw #sexualharassment #sexualassault #legalpractice #harmprevention

Honestly, the world feels heavy right now. Every morning, we wake up to another DV murder, another stabbing. Talking about career progression, marketing campaigns, or digital production feels silly. I only knew of Vincent Hurley after I watched this video, and boy, does he capture what everyone is thinking. Before you ask, "Is this conversation appropriate for LinkedIn ?" Yes.   And someone who felt intimidated in the past when a male colleague towered over me and screamed at me after I had pointed out a mistake he made. HR told me maybe I was questioning him too much. As someone who was previously screamed at by a male colleague whilst in a video call after I told a client I thought something was possible but would need to check. He later said, "I don't know what happened; I was hungry." Neither HR nor my managers were ever told. I was just glad it was over video and not in person. As someone who has worked in an environment where a male colleague needed to stop another male colleague from storming a room after he had punched a hole in the wall and needed "to deal" with a female administrator who had questioned him - she ran out the other door because she was so scared. That man still had a job years after any of us left. Yes, this conversation is appropriate for LinkedIn.   Every system is perfectly designed to get the results that it does. Right now, the lack of funding and support in frontline mental health and drug addiction services is resulting in daily occurrences of assault, murder and homicide. We have run out of time to sit and strategize. We need action.  We need more funding into services (especially regional areas). We need to better support frontline workers who have to attend scenes like this every day. Mental health and drug addiction support needs to become more accessible. Things like add Better Help an amazing resource with trained professionals to the Medicare/private health to ease the stress on waiting times. And laws need to change.

Here are the results of my research, recommendations, and ideas - in my free eBook 100,000 words after I spent 2 years writing/researching as a psychologist/author www.meredithfuller.com.au

Time for ACTION Not Words