
16 Days of Activism: Celebrating Queensland Activists
The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence is an annual campaign that begins on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and runs through International Human Rights Day on 10 December.
This year, the UN marks the 16 Days under the theme “UNiTE! Activism to end violence against women and girls”.
16 Days of Activism: From 25 November until 10 December, WorkUP Queensland will acknowledge and highlight the achievements of those working in the DFV sector in Queensland.
Read Lyn’s story below.
Lyn Anderson, Helem Yumba CEO
We spoke to Lyn Anderson, CEO of Helem Yumba, a healing centre.
Lyn has witnessed how Helem Yumba has evolved from having a clinical-focused approach to a healing perspective which uses a family-centred approach.
Activism is the driving force behind the work Lyn does, and she believes this should apply to all of us in the sector. As people experience ongoing impacts of colonisation and gendered violence, their trauma and needs remain unmet by society. Lyn focuses on exploring and identifying these causes of trauma and looks at ways to respond.
“That should be happening all the time, not only during the 16 days. Not only is our trauma minimised and kept under, so are the harms caused by the patriarchy now, gendered violence. It’s tough talking about it. It’s the men who need to stand up and say ‘I want to stop it.’ I’ve been involved in doing some work with blue collar workers about gendered violence. No one wants to know about it. There has to be that active, push, poke, prod. People will feel uncomfortable, but that’s what activism is about. So I’m talking on both fronts, both the hurt caused by colonisation and through the patriarchy.”
Don’t be silent, don’t be a bystander. Get engaged; for too long our fear about standing out and taking against the norm keeps us silent. The more silent we are, the more our women and children will be harmed.
Click here to read all the stories as the become available.