Berry Street Yooralla’s response to this week’s sexual violence allegations

We were devastated to see the recent high-profile allegations of sexual violence and sexual abuse rocking the Melbourne community this week.

Our first thoughts are with the woman who came forward and we commend her for the courage it takes to speak up.

We’re speaking up on this because sexual and family violence is upstream and downstream from so many of the programs and supports that Berry Street Yooralla provides, not only in the childhood and family space and amongst our specialist family violence teams but across the whole organisation, including in disability services, where, women and girls with disability are significantly more likely to have experienced sexual violence than women and girls without disability.

The connection with AFL is also a reminder that every year when there are significant events, there is a well-known increase in the incidence of sexual and family violence.

As our teams gear up for this expected influx again this year, we need to continue to challenge attitudes, attitudes in the way alleged sexual violence is reported and all sexist attitudes.

Sexual violence isn't caused by sexist attitudes or language, but that language and those attitudes definitely enable it, as does every other form of gender inequality.

Sexual violence is overwhelmingly gendered, is overwhelmingly committed by people who identify as men upon people who identify as women and girls. And every form of gender inequality that reinforces that power imbalance enables a spectrum of behaviours, including at its most extreme sexual and family violence.

So, prevention is about challenging gender inequality in all of its forms, in our families, in our homes, in the community and inside our own organisation.

Sexual and family violence is shaped by gender inequality, power and social norms and broader systems of inequality; prevention requires challenging the conditions that enable violence.