Today is White Ribbon Day, the "International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women".

The campaign has grown to the point that today it has a "Foundation" with 7 employees and a massive budget and the support of the PM, as well as many other prominent men and groups.

Last year there was a furore because the Foundation published with much fanfare a media release which claimed that 1/3 of boys thought it OK to hit girls. When the actul report they claimed to be quoting was released, it was found that it actually said precisely the opposite. A retraction was very quietly published some weeks later.

The Press has been much more circumspect this year, with little coverage today, although the C-M published a release quoting "new figures" without further explication, that "reveal" "MORE than half of Australian women will face some form of sexual or physical violence in their lifetime.

And almost 100,000 women a year experience sexual assault"

When we finally get told where the "new figures" came from, will we find that they're as reliable as the completely fabricated ones from last year?

I cannot support the campaign because it has a history of dishonesty and distortion of facts, it ignores the 2/3 of all violence that is experienced by males and it fails children by ignoring the enormous danger they face in families where the biological father is absent.

It is seriously flawed and divisive.

A small correction. The post above should have refeered to the "enormously increased" danger faced by children in mother-only households.

Anti

If your decision lies purely on your perception of a history of dishonesty and distorted facts then that is your right. However, if your lack of support masks another agenda to deny that domestic violence continues to be a problem in families where women and/or children are the abused (by men) then I cannot agree.

I don't know the rate of violence within single parent households. I know in many cases single mothers are facing violence from their grown sons in difficult situations. Do you want to start a campaign for that too?

You are right though on one score. We do need to do more to reduce (and hopefully eradicate) all forms of domestic and other violence. We need to do it as a cohesive group though, and not play my woe is bigger than yours. Or deny the fact that women are abused by men more than the other way around.

Denial isn't going to help. We also need to provide support for men and women who commit violence through counselling, training and education. I suspect most people who commit violence are facing their own demons of various sorts and more assistance with anger control etc would go a long way. Maybe for some it is too late or irreversible, but even if the success rate is only 50% it would be worth it.

In relation to children, there are better reporting mechanisms than in previous years which puts the responsibility onto carers, teachers, doctors and other professionals to report cases of suspected abuse regardless of the gender of the abuser.

The other aspect is a reluctance to remove children from less than desirable family situations. Although I know the problem is not an easy one, because what do we do with these children? How do we monitor the foster homes where they end up?

Sometimes governments decide that leaving the children in their home is the best option as long as strong support networks and assistance is offerred. Other times the problems are too great and removal is the best option.

Come on septic it's really just because the feminists are involved. You're like a feminist with a wet spot over a new NRL scandal!

Generally though, I'd like to propose any organisation that release b-llshit figures to have to use the apology as the main focus for their next national day.

We cant have people abusing these days, as there's only 365 of them, and foundations with pet causes such as Cross Fingers Day deserve the spot if others are gonna abuse the privilege.

http://blogs.news.com.au/jackmarxlive/index.php/news/comments/cross_fingers_day/
( Yep here it is again. It's the funniest thing I've ever seen, and explains brilliantly the whole phenomena of last White Ribbon Day. It's on topic too. )

Imagine if the White Ribbon lot covered their website today with an apology to all those school boys they slagged off last year. I think that would be a gesture fitting of the intention to deal honestly and fairly with the topic of domestic violence rather than the intention to portray a one-sided witch hunt.

They could also include further quotes from the same 'research' they used last year...

'Males hitting females was seen, virtually by everyone, to be unacceptable...however, it appeared to be quite acceptable for a girl to hit a boy'

and

'There was no spontaneous recognition that verbal abuse or a female hitting her boyfriend could also constitute dating violence, however, these were among the prevalent forms of violence occurring.'

and

'The key factor behind the use of violence for females towards males was, primarily, one of an expression of frustration or anger: hence, reacting to being "out of control" and needing to "get his attention", "˜to make him listen,"… "guys deserve it"'

from the National Crime Prevention Report on Young People and Domestic Violence (2001).

Has anyone stopped to pay any thought to the crime of torture, go to the link below and read and pay serious attention to the provocation defence and also the section under torture.

http://www.aussielegal.com.au/informationoutline~SubtopicDetailsID~811.htm

Now I am not arguing that it is right that someone should be assaulted that is smaller than another but with rights come Responsibilities and yes it it a pre-concieved idea that,

"'The key factor behind the use of violence for females towards males was, primarily, one of an expression of frustration or anger: hence, reacting to being "out of control" and needing to "get his attention", "˜to make him listen,"… "guys deserve it"'"

Also if a man has a woman that is r//ting the ar/e of blokes and women for drugs while he fights his guts out to bring his child home that has been physically and psychologically abused by lies and perjury and that woman continues to play at ridicule of the man behind his back while saying that she wants the child home as much as him to his face and that man breaks after 9 years of this and she hits him should it be right that the woman hide behind the "White Ribbon Day" and what it stands for?

Remember the link and the crime of torture

Thanks
From Dave

White Ribbon day, or Gender Discrimination Day is what it should be called. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd supports it so it must be important, or that's what we are supposed to think but in fact any political agenda that supports Kevin Rudd's religious ideology, he has that ribbon pinned to his little jacket & we are to take him seriously as a PM. In fact it's just another tax exempt institution sharing in the 'Purple Money' that charity organizations thrive on. The claim's that there is no excuse for domestic violence is a nice thought but it is a campaign for the send the cheque here money spinners & as ridiculous as Bob Hawks "no child in poverty" claim. The religious gender discriminators that are benefiting from it, as well as the female cowards that hide behind it whilst they destroy the male father figure in children's lives under the full support of the law.