Council to support Respect Victoria: Call It Out campaign
Published on 13 November 2020
West Wimmera Shire Council is again participating in Respect Victoria’s Respect Women: Call It Out campaign.
The campaign runs from November 25 to December 10 and coincides with the United Nation’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.
The Respect Women: ‘Call It Out’ campaign encourages Victorians to call out sexism, sexual harassment and disrespect towards women.
This campaign aims to support the Victorian community in understanding what respect means, what it looks like, and how to put it into practice in their everyday lives.
West Wimmera Shire Council, along with Respect Victoria, wants to inspire action and to encourage members of the public to embrace the types of behaviours and actions
As part of the campaign, residents are encouraged to show their support in a number of ways.
Community members will be able to listen to virtual guest speaker and domestic violence survivor Simone O’Brien talk about her journey.
A video of Simone’s talk will be available at Council’s website here.
QR codes will also be placed around the shire, to allow people to easily access the video.
Another way people can show their support to the campaign is through shopping.
Council will supply towns in the shire with recyclable shopping bags that display the Respect Victoria: Call It Out logo.
The bags will be given out to shoppers at Edenhope Foodworks, Kaniva IGA and Goroke IGA.
Council also has a number of orange hats to give away, displaying the Respect Victoria logo. Residents can pick up a hat from the Kaniva or Edenhope shire offices and take a photo of them wearing it.
Photos can be emailed to communications@westwimmera.vic.gov.au over the 16 days of the campaign and they will be posted on Council’s website and Facebook page.
Council chief executive David Leahy said everyone in West Wimmera Shire was invited to watch Simone’s video and get involved in the campaign.
“We are very fortunate to have Simone O’Brien as our virtual guest speaker this year,” he said.
“Simone suffered a horrific domestic violence attack in 2012. She now works tirelessly to raise awareness of domestic violence and give strength to victims to get out of violent relationships.
Simone’s presentation is appropriate for school-aged children with parental supervision.
Mr Leahy said family violence was an important issue in the region.
“It is vital that we all do our part to make our shire a safer place for everyone,” he said.
“We need to work together to create change and I encourage everyone in the community to show their support.”
The Wimmera Committee Against Family Violence is also having a virtual event for the Respect Victoria campaign.
The committee had called for residents to submit a photo or shot video representing the concept of ‘shining a light’ on family violence. The entries will be edited into a short video, which will be launched on November 27 on the group’s Facebook page.
The video aims to demonstrate to women and their children that they are not in the darkness alone and that the community is here to support them.