Meet some of the trainers driving change in DV-alert and hear why intersectionality matters
Published on 8th of March 2024
On International Women’s Day (8 March), we honour the remarkable achievements of women worldwide while acknowledging the challenges of discrimination, sexism and violence that so many face daily.
It is an opportunity to reflect on how domestic and family violence affects people from all walks of life, backgrounds, age and social standing, and particularly impacts on women.
At DV-alert, we're dedicated to inclusive training that embraces an intersectional approach.
What is intersectionality?
According to UN Women Australia, ‘intersectionality’, a term coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989, is “a way of thinking about identity and its relationship to power." It acknowledges that people’s lives are shaped by their identities, relationships and social factors.
When an intersectional lens is applied to violence and gender inequality, it means being conscious that victim-survivors may be subject to multiple forms of discrimination such as racism, colonialism, ableism, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, and ageism.
Research shows that certain groups, including First Nations people, younger women, and LGBTQIA+ individuals, face higher rates of violence due to social inequality and discrimination and for First Nations people, because of the ongoing impacts of colonisation.
Applying intersectionality to our work
When combating domestic or family violence, applying an intersectional lens is crucial. It involves understanding how structural inequalities and discrimination limit access to resources and power. It also acknowledges that trauma can impact people's presentation, needs, and ability to engage with services differently.
In practice, it involves creating and maintaining an environment where all individuals are treated in a culturally safe and respectful manner.
What can you do as a frontline worker?
As frontline workers, there are several actions we can take to integrate intersectionality into our practice:
- Check your privilege: Reflect on your social identities and consider how they impact the discriminations you do and don't experience.
- Listen and learn: Listen to, include, and meaningfully collaborate with diverse groups of people.
- Make space: Ask yourself if you’re the right person to take up space or speak on certain issues. Centre stories and actions on those with diverse lived experiences.
- Watch your language: Recognise and correct the use of ableist, exclusionary, and offensive language. Be open to feedback and raise concerns with others as appropriate and when necessary.
By embracing intersectionality, we can better address the diverse needs of victim-survivors and work towards a more equitable society.
Meet some of DV-alert’s trainers leading our work
In honour of International Women’s Day, we want to celebrate the contributions of the diverse women who are driving change on the DV-alert team.
Tracey Groombridge is a Lifeline Tasmania Trainer.
Tracey started her professional journey in domestic violence prevention in 1998 as a student working at the Hobart Women’s shelter. She recalls it was a “baptism of fire”. On her first day Tracey collected a woman and her children from a home while her husband was out of the house at lunch, which was their opportunity to escape to the refuge. But her experience there laid the ground for her to understand the impact of domestic violence. She went on to work in homelessness, supporting women and children escaping domestic violence. But having started at the coalface she has ended up in prevention at DV-alert. Tracey was recently on the committee for the Stop DV Conference in Hobart in 2023.
What motivated you to work in the field of domestic violence?
Last year in Australia 65 women were killed by their partners and ex-partners, the year before that it was 52 women, this number should not be rising. We should not accept it going up. 65 women is the highest this country has ever seen. I never want to see that number that high again, this motivates me to want to do what I can.
My passion for this work, like for many, is also personal – watching my grandmother suffer and experience control and abuse at the hands of her husband is what drives me to want gender equity. Growing up in a low-income area I saw domestic violence regularly in the neighbourhood and as a child I thought there must be another way to live as a woman besides this!
I often think about my grandmother today and wonder what life she would have had if she had been believed and had been given access to education about the types of abuse that can occur in marriage.
In your experience, what unique challenges do women from different backgrounds face when dealing with domestic violence?
Being a woman who is experiencing domestic violence is in itself a challenge and a barrier but add to that language barriers, cultural or religious expectations and disability and these challenges especially for a woman in a new country makes this problem seem far greater and more difficult to escape from.
These women are also often not represented in domestic violence campaigns, it becomes a hidden shameful problem. Luckily in recent times things are improving in this area and there is more awareness about these additional challenges that frontline workers need to be aware of.
Rural women also face challenges in accessing services, staying connected to people that can help and trying to leave safely if they choose to.
What does intersectionality mean to you in your work?
For me intersectionality is about looking at the intersecting parts that can expose some people to more discrimination than others and being aware about how unacknowledged privilege can make this discrimination and barriers worse. An intersectional lens allows us the opportunity to take a deep look at our own privilege and to recognise who is not at the table, which voices are not heard, which people are simply not even acknowledged.
Intersectionality is confronting for people because it requires people to address their own privilege. Instead of getting curious about this, people often get defensive. The more we discuss it and understand it the better we are at catching our blind spots and breaking down discrimination.
What difference do you hope to make with your work?
If I can see that number 65 drop and not increase, I will feel the sector is having some impact.
For me, it's helping people understand we must work effectively with men who choose to use violence (or are thinking about using violence) and abuse as well or we are only tackling this multifaceted issue from one angle. We must be effective in tackling it from a prevention perspective, and we need to make sure information in the sector flows to the people who need it most.
I also want to keep seeing that just one person can make a monumental difference.
Elaine Wu is DV-alert eLearning Lead with Lifeline Australia.
Elaine is a domestic and family violence Trainer and Assessor with a background in Early Childhood Teaching and international communications. Her dedication to supporting women and children in the community has always been a driving force. Over time, Elaine has been exposed to numerous accounts of controlling partners and violent incidents – heard within the staff room, during drop-off or pick-up hours, student disclosures of how they are abused and trapped in a relationship due to their visa status, and she even witnessed instances of stalking leading to emergency lockdowns at services. Elaine has since pursued specialised training in trauma-informed practice and has cultivated culturally sensitive approaches to address domestic violence within diverse communities.
What motivated you to work in the field of domestic violence?
The experiences mentioned above prompted me to reconsider how I can most effectively advocate for and support women and children. Additionally, as a recent migrant to Australia, witnessing how racism and discrimination exacerbate the effects of domestic and family violence, creating additional barriers for women to live free from violence, has been eye-opening. Culturally and linguistically diverse communities have been silenced for too long.
With this personal understanding and a strong determination to instigate change, I have shifted my career focus to the prevention field. I now work in a role dedicated to increasing frontline workers' awareness, enabling them to recognise, respond to, and appropriately refer cases of domestic and family violence.
In your experience, what unique challenges do women from different backgrounds face when dealing with domestic violence?
In my experience, women from diverse backgrounds often face unique challenges when experiencing domestic violence. These challenges may include cultural barriers, language barriers, immigration status concerns, and lack of access to culturally appropriate support services. Understanding and addressing these intersecting factors is crucial in effectively supporting victim/survivors and ensuring their needs are met in a culturally sensitive and respectful manner.
How do you address intersectionality in your training?
In the eLearning space, I emphasise the importance of intersectionality by exploring how various forms of oppression, such as racism, sexism, classism, and ableism, intersect and compound the experiences of individuals affected by domestic violence. On the student portal, the learning materials incorporate case studies, discussions, and exercises that highlight these intersecting factors. Learners gain a deeper understanding of the complexities involved and learn how to provide more individualised and effective support to those who experience domestic and family violence.
What difference do you hope to make with your work?
Ultimately, the difference I hope to make with my work is to contribute towards creating a society where domestic violence is not tolerated, where victim/survivors, regardless of background, have access to culturally appropriate and inclusive support services to rebuild a better life. By raising awareness, providing training, and advocating for systemic change, I aim to play a role in achieving this vision of a safer and more equitable society for all.
Ingrid Del Carmen Macartney, is a contractor with Lifeline Australia and provides counselling support and training.
Ingrid is a CALD woman who was born in Santiago, Chile and migrated to Australia with her parents as a child. Her love of learning has seen her complete an undergraduate degree in psychology, postgraduate masters in counselling and business, and a postgraduate degree in education (career counselling). She has worked in the DFV sector for over a decade in different roles, spanning from practitioner, team leader and most recently director in a not for profit DV prevention organisation. Ingrid has been an advocate for CALD women who have been and or are subjected to domestic and family violence. She was a facilitator for a group of women in Queensland who participated in providing information to 'Hear her Voice report' commissioned by the Women's Safety and Justice Taskforce. Ingrid has also been an advocate in the temporary visa arena in Queensland and the barriers faced by CALD women on temporary visas who are experiencing DFV.
What motivated you to work in the field of domestic violence?
My motivation stems from the challenges and barriers that systems and patriarchal practices have created for women who are living with DFV. Being a CALD woman has provided me with a different lens in viewing barriers faced by CALD women who are living with or have experienced DFV. I have been able and feel privileged in being able to utilise my skill sets to provide support to this cohort.
In your experience, what unique challenges do women from different backgrounds face when dealing with domestic violence?
There are currently around 275 cultures and ethnic groups recognised in Australia. For the purpose of making this succinct, I will concentrate on five unique challenges that CALD women face who are experiencing DFV:
The obvious challenge of language is one that CALD women face, being understood and believed by services. The challenge at times of being accurately identified by police as the 'person most in need of protection' in a DFV situation and supported through this process.
Understanding the Australian legal processes and support systems in Australia is another challenge for CALD women with the added complexity of fear due to their individual pre-migration experiences.
CALD women on some temporary visas are not eligible to access key supports such as Centrelink, Housing and Health. This places them in a more vulnerable situation where they may stay in an unsafe relationship. Women on temporary visas may be deported, while people who utilise violence (perpetrators) are not held accountable for their behaviour.
Shame about how their experience may be perceived by extended family members in their country of origin is another challenge that CALD women face. It is not just the individual CALD woman that is impacted by DFV and if she decides to leave the relationship but the ripple effect this has on extended family and relationships.
How do you address intersectionality in your training?
Many factors combine to form an individual's identity and experience. Intersectionality shines a light on the different aspects of a person's identity that can expose that person to overlapping forms of discrimination and marginalisation. This may include gender, class, ethnicity, cultural background, religion, disability and sexual orientation. Gender inequality means that women are most at risk of experiencing DFV. The risk for women from diverse communities is exacerbated by intersecting social and institutional / systemic disadvantages.
What difference do you hope to make with your work?
I hope to create a facilitated adult learning experience where the participants actively learn and can recognise, respond and refer in a supportive manner to someone who is currently living in a domestic and family violence situation.