Men in the Mall

On Friday I attended with other White Ribbon Ambassadors at Men in the Mall, an event in Brisbane’s Queen St Mall publicising White Ribbon Day, and encouraging men to take the oath.

White Ribbon Day or the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women is held this Wednesday, 25 November.

Other ambassadors who attended included:

• sports legend Steve Renouf
• Senator Mark Furner
• triple world kickboxing champion Ian Jacobs

Steve Renouf has a clear passion against violence by men to women. Senator Furner gave a passionate speech, including talking about a father’s lament: a father whose daughter had been subjected to domestic violence. Ian Jacobs demonstrated his SAFE program, especially to ensure that the elderly are able to protect themselves.

My little speech was modest compared to the achievements of these men. I am but a mere Brisbane family lawyer. I have not represented my country or state in sport or politics and have not become a world champion.

I welcomed the police for attending, and for being such strong supporters of White Ribbon Day. Police are called day in day out to turn up at domestics. It can be very dangerous and sometimes deadly work. As a society we often take these efforts for granted. The reality is that no matter how much the police are criticised for not doing enough about domestic violence, the battle against domestic violence, in all its forms, cannot be won without the assistance of police and the courts.

I was also lucky to listen to Joe Lynch recite some of his poetry. In our hurley burley lives at times we forget the beauty of poetry- and especially when delivered as Joe did with an Irish lilt.