Preventing gender-based violence
As part of the 16 Days Against Gender-based Violence, we sat down with youth leader Ridmi for her advice on how we can all play a part in preventing gender-based violence.
Ridmi is a 27-year-old woman who is an expert in family violence prevention. Her family, her parents and her sister, arrived in Australia when she was 11 years old. She has a Bachelor’s in Biomedicine, Honours in the use of contraception as primary care, and completed her post-graduate studies in family violence prevention. She is currently studying a Master’s of Public Health at the University of Melbourne, specialising in sexual health, gender and disaster management. She has also volunteered with What Were You Wearing Australia and Raise the Crowd.
Amongst this, Ridmi has also been keenly involved with programs and projects around CMY. She is a Shout Out speaker and a youth facilitator for CMSport, and she was also involved with the gender-based violence prevention program, Speak Up.
One particular project she is working with here at CMY is the Working Together project where she is a youth leader. This project helped build the ‘I need to know you’re safe’ framework, a resource created by CMY and Anglicare Victoria to assist young multicultural people navigating family violence services. Ridmi particularly enjoyed being involved with this project, where she was involved with the initial consultation process.
In Ridmi’s opinion “not one approach or solution is going to prevent this epidemic of violence against women.” However, one of the crucial solutions that she suggests is education. Educating yourself and others is what Ridmi thinks will dispel a lot of disinformation and misinformation that surrounds family violence.
“I truly believe that by educating people with correct evidence-based information on the causes, prevention and solutions for gender-based violence, we will improve,” says Ridmi.
“Because no matter how many legislations we change, for better or worse, if the mass public is educated on the right information then we can create change. We can create long-lasting change.”
Ridmi also suggests that this education should come with the courage to speak out and tell your own stories of abuse.
“Speak up. Abuse and disrespect thrive in silence: so break it. I know it’s scary and I know it’s often the riskiest part for some people. But share your story.” Ridmi says.
“One of the biggest ways perpetrators try to control you is by isolating you, ripping you off your voice and dis-empowering you. When you share your story, even if it’s with one person, you take away that power and control people have over you.”
Alongside this, Ridmi thinks it’s just as vital for bystanders and witnesses of family violence to have the same bravery to speak up and call out abuse when they see it.
“By creating noise and bringing awareness to issues like family violence we can make people accountable,” says Ridmi.
“If you don’t feel safe approaching the situation yourself and directly go to the perpetrator then it’s okay, as long as you let someone else in a position of power [know] then you have helped.”
Despite the many alarming trends of violence and abuse against women currently, Ridmi is hopeful for the future. She’s optimistic for a future free of gender-based violence with everyone respecting each other. She thinks there have been some great steps in the right direction like with consent-based school education and a general awareness of gender-based violence, but to her, the work is far from over.
“I am hopeful that the younger generation are more vocal than ever before for the right reasons,” Ridmi says.
“We are demanding more respect and for equality. I believe that if we keep being vocal and keep pushing we can have a world free from gender-based violence.”
Read CMY’s youth-informed ‘I Need to Know You’re Safe’ Framework