There is a pandemic that you don’t hear about often. This pandemic has been killing women for thousands of years. Annually, it claims the lives of 66,000 women; millions more are seriously injured. It can’t be prevented through vaccines and social distancing. Eradicating it is much more difficult; it runs so deep. It’s in our education system, in our healthcare and legal systems. It’s on the streets, in the mouths of men we’ve never met before and in the fists of the men we’ve known for years. It’s in the stereotypes that tell women what to wear, how to talk, how to act, and it’s in them being hurt if they don’t comply to said stereotypes. This pandemic is gender-based violence, and we must end it now.
In this article I will explore some reasons why change is so slow in our society and what we must do to end this deep-rooted culture of violence and misogyny.
Undoubtedly, the first step in ending domestic, sexual gender-based violence (DSGBV) is recognising that it is far more common than we’d like to believe. According to a report by Women’s Aid, 1 in 5 women who’ve been in a relationship have been abused by a partner. 1 in 3 women worldwide have faced physical or sexual violence. That is over 1.3 billion women. Violence against women is everywhere. So ask yourself, why is change taking so long?
Firstly, for our society to evolve further, our laws and governments must evolve with us. However, those in high-power positions don’t want to change; it’ll cost them. Our leaders will have to shake things up, make decisions that won’t resonate well with their conservative supporters, spend money and spend time. Having someone who not only recognises the difficulties faced by women but lives them is essential in order for wider societal change to be achieved. To have a larger population of women in political positions, we must change how we treat women in male dominated fields. We must stop treating them as inadequate to their male counterparts and encourage education through scholarships and programmes that allow them to achieve their full potential. A more diverse government will lead to more legislation being put in place that will support a wider cultural shift in how we treat women. Legislation alone won’t end DSGBV, but having laws that support women will discourage potential offenders, help women feel safer to call out violence and pursue justice and will support a larger shift in how women are treated.
Secondly, the everyday person is so used to living in this misogynistic society that they have accepted it as a given, not a crime. We must realise change won’t happen unless we fight for it and unless we change our mindsets. It won’t be an easy task, and many of us aren’t ready to give up our blindly comfortable lives, but it’s the only way for us to achieve the change we so desperately need.
Our children are our future. Their brains haven’t yet been poisoned by harmful stereotypes and hateful thoughts. Naturally, prevention of misogyny begins with them and their education. The No Means No campaign is a wonderful example of how effective education is in ending DSGBV. No Means No teaches girls self-defence techniques and teaches boys to oppose rape myths and always look for consent. The 12-hour programme has led to a 50% decrease in cases of sexual assault of girls who took part, and ¾ of the boys educated in the course have also intervened in an assault of a woman. Programmes like No Means No have proven to be highly successful in teaching our children about DSGBV, but education starts in the home. It starts with parents, siblings and friends. It starts with you. We have a responsibility to be the change our children need to see. We must teach them how pornography reinforces harmful stereotypes about sex and portrays men as ‘dominant’ and women as sex objects. We must teach them to always seek consent and never to feel pressured into giving it. We must teach our girls to fight back and teach our boys not to give them a reason to fight at all.
“You have to look at the way she was dressed. She was wearing a thong with a lace front.” Elizabeth O’Connell SC allegedly stated during the rape trial of a Cork woman in 2018. Our treatment of victims/survivors is one of the primary reasons DSGBV remains such a prevalent issue in our society. Their abuse is often downplayed or downright ignored by the courts and the public. Two-thirds of rapes go unreported, only 1 in 5 accused of domestic violence are charged. I’ll tell you why. The road to justice is invasive, invalidating and often inaccessible. Our courts must strive to deliver justice, without harming the victim further. This can be done by providing accessible therapy, legal help and healthcare to survivors. Providing safe escape routes for women in the prostitution industry and putting laws in place that protect women in the courtroom and in everyday life is essential. Even with a better legal system, violence against women won't ever go away if we don’t do our utmost to stand up for any woman who is brave enough to speak up from being blamed and shamed. We must take personal responsibility when it comes to empowering survivors. We must listen to them and let them feel heard. If the direly needed change is implemented, we can raise the number of rapists prosecuted from 1.3%, lower the number of women abused by partners from an appalling 1 in 3, bring all offenders to justice and give survivors peace of mind
This article only touched on how to change our deeply, generationally misogynistic society. It won’t be easy or fast, but the sooner we start the better. We can make it happen, and someday we’ll live in a world where women don’t just survive, we live.