Celebrating International Men’s Day

Director’s Report – Newsletter November 2016

We all now know we are living in a world of change, uncertainty and surprises after the tumultuous events of the past weeks on the international and national front!

On the international stage, there is Brexit and Trump trumping the US elections!  On the national stage, The Bulldogs won the Grand Football Final after a 42 year drought and a decimated leadership team two years ago. And the Labor Party won the NT elections by a landslide, signalling votes for indigenous youth justice, consultation and unity.

Maiden speeches by newly elected parliamentarians have declared support for the recognition of Aboriginal people in the constitution and in ‘closing the gap’. Nonetheless grim realities also continue to prevail. Domestic violence is a “contagion that is out of control” says NT Coroner, Greg Cavanagh.  He had held an inquest into the deaths of two women who were victims of violent crimes in Alice Springs and concluded that the criminal justice system failed to protect these two women and women in general. He concluded that policing and punitive sentences do not provide an answer to stopping the violence, however he has recommended new legislation to increase police powers.

A senior Aboriginal leader said to me recently, “let us hope the voices of the Aboriginal men are heard on the ground about what they think is important to address in the fight against domestic violence”.

November 19 is International Men’s Day – a day to come together to celebrate what it means to be a man and also to build support for some of the problems men face. Over this week, a number of events are planned in Central Australia and Alice Springs by Aboriginal men. CASSE will share reports of these events via our blog, Twitter and Facebook accounts and help amplify the voices to be heard.

We are also so proud to be amplifying the voices of the men of Australia’s central and western desert region who are involved with the Men’s Tjilirra Movement (MTM). Following on from the first MTM video made by CASSE with the men, ‘Wake Up Strong‘, helps us to hear the men voice their struggles, and feel their pain and their hope so we can join together and move forward together in the future.

So take a breather from the roller coaster events, watch the video and take a look at our November Newsletter which reports on the latest work and achievements of CASSE and the men in Central Australia.

Take a break over the festive season – on behalf of everyone at CASSE, I wish you all a good one.

Pamela Nathan
Director, CASSE Aboriginal Australian Relations Program

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