RICHMOND Football Club CEO Brendan Gale spoke on the terrifying reality many young girls will grow up to face in their own homes following the family violence walk through Pakenham on White Ribbon Day on Wednesday 25 November.
Here in his own words Mr Gale expresses why he is so passionate about eradicating family violence.
“There is nothing more important in this world than our children and today is a day when I think a lot about my two daughters.
We all think about our kids, what sort of world are they growing up in? How can I make them safe? What are their hopes and dreams for the future?
The sad fact is that for some of our daughters, life beyond their childhood home will become a nightmare as a result of domestic violence.
It’s horrible to think that someone that you hold so precious will ultimately become so disrespected and abused by someone else.
The men who perpetrate this behaviour should be ashamed and the men who don’t need to take a stand.
Today we encourage all men across Australia to speak out and take an oath.
An oath swearing never to commit, excuse or remain silent about violence against women.
Why? Because things must change.
On average, one women is killed in Australia every week as a result of intimate partner violence.
That is more than 50 lives ended needlessly every year and countless others ruined through extended family and friends.
And then we have those women that live with it or have lived through it… one in three women have experienced sexual and/or physical abuse by someone known to them.
Many end up homeless.
And the often forgotten victims are the children themselves.
They absorb the violence – terrified – and ultimately have a significantly increased risk of mental health issues in later life.
The bottom line is that domestic violence takes a terrible toll in this country every day and it is utterly unacceptable.
And it is why today – White Ribbon Day – is so important.
But what more can we do?
At Richmond we have committed to driving gender equity in our workplace and to take a leadership role for elite sport more broadly.
Research shows that building greater equality and respect between men and women can reduce attitudes that support violence.
So not only does getting gender equity right in our workplace make good business sense but there are broader social implications as well.
Key international frameworks, such as those developed by the World Health Organisation (2002) and VicHealth (2007) identify the key determinants of men’s violence against women as including the unequal power between women and men and rigid adherence to gender roles.
A supportive, respectful, flexible, equitably-paid job gives women the economic base that can assist them make decisions about the rest of their life.
They don’t need to remain in violent relationships – potentially risking their life – because of their economic circumstances.
Gender equity in the workplace empowers women in so many ways but in terms of the domestic violence issues it provides them with choice.
As mentioned earlier, it is utterly unacceptable that women even need to consider removing themselves from a violent situation.
And that situation is nobody’s fault but that of the violent perpetrator and they should be dealt with under the law.
But at Richmond we believe empowering women in the workplace has a role to play in helping keep women safe.
As part of that commitment we have a responsibility to tell the gender equity story as sport in this country provides a powerful voice.
It was one of the reasons the club led the establishment of the Elite Sport Male Champions of Change – a group that comprises 15 CEOs from seven major sports – each committed to driving genuine change.
We all want sport to play a leading role in developing a more equitable community and the benefits of getting that right are far reaching.”
