When Safety Isn’t Enough
A message from our CEO, Lisa Ward
Domestic, family and sexual violence does not begin with a police call, an emergency department presentation or a refuge placement.
More often, it begins much earlier.
It can take hold when someone becomes isolated from friends and family, cannot communicate confidently in English, has no independent income, does not understand Australian laws or systems, and has no trusted person to turn to. By the time the violence becomes visible, the conditions that have allowed it to continue may have been in place for years.
Earlier this year, I heard the story of a young refugee mother who had finally found the courage to leave a violent relationship….
