Ideas & Society Program: Domestic violence: Why? What is to be done?

This year has seen a sharp rise in awareness of the violent, sometimes murderous, threats to women and/or their children, of current or former intimate partners. The terrible stories of Rosie Batty, Hannah Clarke and too many others have finally made their mark.

The federal government has recently committed $3.4 billion to a 10-year program aimed at combating domestic violence.

In New South Wales legislation has made "coercive control" a criminal offence. The law came into force on July 1, 2024.

In response to this national emergency, Jess Hill, the author of the celebrated See What You Made Me Do and Michael Salter, Professor of Sociology at the University of New South Wales, have recently published an influential and controversial paper, Rethinking Primary Prevention.

Hill and Salter offer a challenge to the principal programs for tackling domestic violence--gender equality education aiming at society-wide attitudinal change.

They believe that such laudable programs will take far too long. Change is needed not in decades but now. They also point to evidence revealing that the levels of male violence against intimate partners remain stubbornly high in the Nordic countries where gender equality has made greatest progress.

Hill and Salter's own program for action includes greater regulation of industries associated with domestic violence: social media, pornography, gambling and alcohol. And they argue for activist intervention from the police and social welfare bodies wherever evidence of likely future abuse--including coercive control--is found.

The Ideas and Society Program is pleased and proud that both Jess Hill And Michael Salter have accepted our invitation to outline their views on how to understand and how to fight the sinister, well-known pattern of male intimate partner behaviour--control, intimidation, violence and murder.

The event is online. It will take place on August 27, between 5.00pm and 6.30 pm.

Moderator: Annabelle Daniel OAM

Chief Executive Officer, Women’s Community Shelters

Speaker: Professor Angela Taft

Emeritus Professor and former Director of the Judith Lumley Centre, La Trobe University

Speaker: Jess Hill

Journalist, author, speaker

Speaker: Professor Michael Slater

Postgraduate Coordinator, School of Social Sciences, University of New South Wales