54, No More. Australia has a gender-based violence epidemic that must be snuffed out

Hundreds of protestors across the nation took part in the What Were You Wearing's rally last week, with two very clear demands of government.

54, No More.

Say it once, say it again, there’s no excuse for violent men.

Wherever we go, whatever we wear, yes means yes and no means no.

These were just some of the strong sentiments that reverberated across the streets of inner-city Brisbane last weekend.

The Brisbane protest was led by What Were You Wearing CEO Sarah Williams, who spoke about her experiences of sexual violence and her hopes for a safer environment for women in Australia. Image credit: Lauren Bartholomew

Gender-based violence has become a nationwide epidemic, with recent reports showing a significant increase in cases in the previous year. Last year, one woman was murdered every seven days in Australia by a current or former partner.

Now, it’s one woman every four days. One mother, one daughter, one niece, one friend, one colleague. One woman loses her life and all the dreams she had for the future she so rightfully deserved to have.

Every.

Four.

Days.

We’re only 7 months into the year, and 54 women have been killed at the hand of male violence. And we don’t even know if this already appalling number is truly representative of the devastating reality in our country, as government is yet to create a national toll.

The What Were You Wearing rallies provided an empowering atmosphere for the public to come together and advocate for policies to better protect our women.

Representing 4ZZZ Radio, Jaya Lichy and I attended the rally to interview the protestors and organisers about their demands and hopes for the future.

A huge shoutout is in order for Sarah Williams, the CEO of What Were You Wearing, and Kaleidoscope news founder Demi Lynch for giving us time for an interview.

You can listen to our radio package that aired on Brisbane Line today through this link.

I spoke to Kaleidoscope News Founder Demi Lynch, who was also a keynote speaker at the event, about how the mainstream media needs to stop using clickbait headlines, like Wheelie Bin Victim, which further dehumanizes and belittles women. Image credit: Lavender Menance, rvn.streephotography.