SOUTHERN Women’s Action Network (SWAN) rallied in Mornington on Thursday 25 November in support of Safe Steps 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence and Mornington Peninsula 16ks in 16 days Steps for Respect.
They called for an end to what they say is a “growing incidence of violence against women”.
SWAN members marched along Main Street, chatting to interested bystanders, before being addressed by Cr Sarah Race in Mornington Park.
Cr Race said the Walk Against Family Violence “amplified a cause that is endemic on the peninsula”.
With fragmented services exacerbated by COVID, there was a “critical need for longer-term and crisis housing, as lack of accommodation means that women often must stay and survive with their abuser, try to find a place to crash or end up homeless and/or sleeping in their cars”.
SWAN member Maureen Donelly said: “It is shameful that in our modern society, despite all its economic, social and technological advances, women and children are still subject to violence and abuse in their own homes.
“We need to stand together against sexism and violence in our community.”
First published in the Mornington News – 7 December 2021
