Our National Shame: Violence Against Women

by Kate Fitz-Gibbon

The exposés in early 2021 of sexism and sexual violence in Parliament House prompted women across the country (and some men) to take to stages, lecterns and social media to express their rage and demand action. However, while these events highlighted that violence against women is an ongoing issue in our community, in many ways the allegations and incidents should not shock us. They are part of women’s daily lives. In Our National Shame, Kate Fitz-Gibbon reminds us that violence against women is not a private issue that needs bespoke, case-by-case solutions. It is a community-wide problem that, to be properly addressed, requires a dramatic shift in how we understand and respond to men’s violence, and most importantly, the tackling of gender inequality in this country. Transformative national leadership must drive this. But do our political masters have either the will or the integrity to meet this challenge?

Genres: Feminism, Nonfiction

96 pages, Paperback

Published October 1, 2021

About the author

Kate Fitz-Gibbon is Director of the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre and Associate Professor of Criminology in the School of Social Sciences at Monash University. She is an Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Law and Social Justice at University of Liverpool.

Do not combine with Kate Fitz Gibbon

Reviews

[jenna tasovac · Rating 4 out of 5]

bite sized but quite brilliant, a succinct but well written exploration of violence against women in Australia, a great recc for anyone who is wanting to understand the issue at home and doesn’t know where to start

[Kate Booth · Rating 5 out of 5]

At under 80 pages, this text is succinct albeit powerful. Dr Fitz-Gibbon writes with a critical eye on one of the most pressing issues facing Australia: men’s violence against women. I read this a few days after the Women’s Safety Summit and would highly recommend.

[emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

a short but super important read, def recommend. 100% agree w the idea of focusing on preventative methods rather then reactive methods!

"i firmly believe that those in power in australia do not take women's safety seriously - that despite decades of people marching and agitating for change, for many of those who hold power, violence against women continues to be viewed as a private issue"

"we can't fix a problem we don't discuss, so it begins with a conversation" (grace tame)

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very short book in the Monash University's "In The National Interest" series. Gives you a great overview of where Australia is at in the battle to stop violence against women. The short answer is that we've made some progress but we've got a long way to go.

[Maxine McEwan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great introductory book about violence against women in Australia.

[Alli_aye · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good snapshot

[MBC · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of the problems I have with any In The National Interest publications are that there are rarely well laid out solutions in the books. This included. Otherwise, a good yet hardly surprising account.

[Meags · Rating 5 out of 5]

Succinct, powerful, incredible…need I go on. I can’t explain to you how amazing this essay is. Despite it’s size, this took me a little while to get through as I kept getting so frustrated and angry at the statistics I was reading, as well as the overall weight of the topic hitting home. Sadly, some of the statistics I read here didn’t seem to equate to anecdotal numbers, with women around me rating higher than the numbers Fitz-Gibbon referenced for sexual assault and harassment. Even then, that is referenced in the essay also, with discussion that numbers may be immeasurably different to that stated due to fear, social-economic status, education, etc. I particularly found the discussion surrounding Hannah Clarke poignant due to the inquest running parallel to when I was reading this. I would be interested in a longer form of this essay being released as a book, however, understandably the statistics and relevancy of incidents would not be as contemporaneous as is possible with shorter forms such as this. Everyone needs to read this essay and understand the chilling statistics that are very real for women in Australia today.