It is our responsibility as Rotarians and Australian citizens to be informed and part of the solution to ending Family Violence in our communities. We must not avoid this topic because we feel helpless or believe that it doesn’t happen to people we know. Rotary Safe Families is a preventative program that will assist Rotarians to be “part of the solution” and to spread “NO” to Family Violence across your community, your Club and throughout Australia.
Our specifically designed Workshops provide everyone with practical safe methods of what actions we need to take to prevent this violence from occurring in the first place and suggestions on how to support someone you know who may be a victim of family violence.
Why do we need this program? Rotary Safe Families was created in response to the fact that “One woman a week is murdered by her partner/ex-partner in Australia”! (Former Victorian Police Commissioner Ken Lay 2013) and that Australian Police get called to one domestic violence incident every 2 minutes or 657 times per day!
What is family violence? It includes not just physical but emotional, psychological, financial, verbal abuse. While family violence includes: children, women, men, in laws, step families, grandparents, nieces and nephews, uncles and aunts Rotary Safe Families primarily focuses on the most common form of family violence in Australia - violence against women (Vic Royal Commission, 2016) and elder abuse.
What is elder abuse? Older people are often overlooked in their vulnerability and “invisibility” in our community and there is a great level of fear in older people as they become less robust and visible. Their abuse which affects both older men and women is massively under reported. As a parent, would you find it difficult to report your child to authorities for threatening you or creating a sense of fear and anxiety? Would you know what to say to an elderly neighbour who was being financially bullied by their son/daughter?
How do we prevent this violence? To be effective, primary prevention activities need to occur simultaneously in all the spaces in which people live, study, work and spend their leisure hours including Rotary Clubs. It is not just the responsibility of agencies, qualified counsellors or law enforcement agencies: “It’s everybody’s responsibility!”
As a community we need to work together and challenge the historically entrenched beliefs and behaviours that drive family violence. We need to create a “new normal” where men and women, boys and girls enjoy respectful relationships across their lifespan from childhood to old age, which, in turn will play a key role in assisting to prevent this violence from occurring in the first place.
So what are we asking? We are seeking Rotary Clubs across Australia to adopt and “champion” Rotary Safe Families to all Rotarians, their family, colleagues and friends both professional and personal.
We hope by now you might be asking yourself: “Where do I fit into this dialogue?”
For those of you who would like to “champion” Rotary Safe Families in your Club or District, contact us (as below) for our assistance and the Information package to be able to “roll out” this program to your District or Club. (Facilitator notes, overheads, videos, template for Manual, Toolkit and Wallet Cards are provided.)
Or simply participate in one or preferably 2 Workshops of 2 hours duration each, with an informed facilitator in your Club or District.
What is in it for me? A new confidence in challenging and changing the face of family violence by doing “something” AND a chance for all Rotary Clubs in Australia to “champion” and “roll out” this program to all Rotarians in your District. You can “make a difference!”
There’s a saying in Rotarian “speak”: “We are here in Rotary to help others.” Well, Rotary Safe Families is here to help you help others!
If you are interested and would like your Club to be “part of the solution” to stamp out family violence, contact: Dorothy Gilmour – Rotary Melbourne- gilmour.dorothy@gmail.com
