May is Domestic Violence Prevention month, and the WA Government have launched two new education campaigns raising awareness of the signs and dangers of coercive control.
The campaigns, 'Coercion Hurts’ and ‘Coercive Control - A Story That’s Not Ours’—which is tailored for Aboriginal audiences—will run alongside one another across a variety of channels for the next two years.
Both campaigns aim to raise awareness among Western Australians about this harmful and often hidden form of Family and Domestic Violence (FDV) and challenge outdated and harmful attitudes.
Coercion Hurts
The ‘Coercion Hurts’ campaign is designed to educate the general public including CaLD groups, and Aboriginal audiences about coercive control and associated behaviours.
Coercive control – A Story That’s Not Ours
‘Coercive control – A Story That’s Not Ours’ is a bespoke campaign specifically for Aboriginal audiences. The statewide multi-language campaign has been created with Aboriginal people, for Aboriginal people, using cultural storytelling practices at the heart.
The campaign includes a poster, social media materials and three versions of an impactful video all available in the Campaign Toolkit.
Voiced by female Aboriginal Elders in four languages including English, Kimberley Kriol, Martu, and Ngaanyatjarra languages —the video reinforces the message that coercive control is not part of Aboriginal culture.
The campaign highlights coercive control behaviours and how it makes a victim survivor feel.
To learn about the two coercive control campaigns and how to support raising awareness please visit www.wa.gov.au/familyviolence and www.wa.gov.au/coercivecontrol