There’s a movement that started in Canada in 1991, now active in 60 countries, including Australia since 2003. It goes by the symbol of the White Ribbon, and it is led by men. White Ribbon is a campaign that seeks to stop men’s violence against women. White Ribbon bases itself on the premise that most men are not violent, and that men can be enabled to take action to safely and effectively challenge the attitudes and behaviours of some men who use their power to inflict harm on women. White Ribbon believes men must be engaged because it is a social issue where lives of their sisters, daughters, mothers, wives, and women friends are involved.
White Ribbon’s plan is simple: encourage the majority of men to work together with members of the community to create a culture in which the mistreatment, contempt, and violence toward women and girls are totally unacceptable.
The solution calls for simple primary intervention initiatives, which start with raising awareness and increasing the capacity of everyone in the community to understand the prevalence, the root causes and the manifestations of violence against women. The solution is aimed at prevention of an act or incidence of violence being committed, in its many forms and occasions. The solution must identify culturally imbedded causes and address crosscultural barriers with the appropriate strategies.
At the White Ribbon workshop for men in early May, organised in cooperation with the Perth Filipino Community Symposium, resource speaker Sunila Kotwal proposed that certain social norms must be replaced so that respect for women is ingrained in the fabric of daily lives. The workshop proposed that, as community leaders and decision makers, men themselves are in a position to speak out, step in, and create a culture that would stop the cycle of violence against women — in the home, the community, in workplaces, and across the international borders.
A number of the workshop participants expressed interest to support the objectives of White Ribbon and organise information awaren activities in Perth.
For further volunteer information, visit www.whiteribbon.org.au
