A group of Warrawong High School boys has taken a stand to prevent violence against women, in a simple but effective video.
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A video showing the boys’ pledge to “stand up, speak out and act to prevent men’s violence against women” is the product of a new young men’s forum operating out of Warrawong and other area high schools.
Illawarra Multicultural Services youth worker Lee Robinson leads the group’s weekly discussions, which focus on domestic and family violence.
The boys sit in a circle and sometimes use news stories to launch their discussions.
“I think certain messages need to come from men to other young men,” Mr Robinson said. “We’ve been building that bit of trust and rapport, building a place where they felt safe to discuss these kinds of issues.”
“They’ve become aware of the problem – the gravity of the situation. One woman a week is dying [as a result of domestic violence].”
Young women’s forums have operated in the Illawarra for more than 10 years. Their male equivalent was borne in the past couple of months as part of a deliberate effort to push discussion of domestic and family violence beyond gender lines.
Groups are now in operation at Warrawong, Corrimal, Warilla and Figtree high schools.
The Warrawong group is made up of Year 10 students from Macedonian, Turkish, Albanian, Australian, Indonesian, German, Palestinian and Slovenian backgrounds.
Mr Robinson said the group’s diversity had given greater meaning to the pledges the boys made, because “they feel they represent so many people.”
Mr Robinson said some of the boys had disclosed their own experiences to do with domestic and family violence.
In the later stages of the video, the boys challenge the Warilla Figtree an Corrimal high groups to make a similar pledge.
The video has been widely praised among Warrawong High School’s social media community.
“Empowering, honest and brave,” wrote one observer, Gail Isedale.
“Not an easy thing to do as a teenager. Congratulations to these young men for making their families, school and community proud!”