Abuse is not limited to 16 days so education needs to be year-round

It’s hard to shake the scenes of graphic violence in the HBO series, Big Little Lies.

Nicole Kidman plays the role of Celeste Wright, a mother in a domestic abuse cycle at the hands of her husband, played by Alexander Skarsgård.

Vanity Fair describes their marriage as ‘a high-wire act in which the actors summon a textured, toxic marriage, replete with graphic violence, passionate sex, and a disturbing combination of both.’

It’s a difficult relationship to digest as a viewer. It was tough on Kidman too, as she told Vulture in an interview, “After we shot some of the really, really violent scenes, I was in a lot of pain myself. My body was. It was very strange. It was very uncomfortable. It wasn’t a good feeling, I have to say. But women go through this, so I wanted to tap into the truth of it, and I wanted to be real in those scenes, so that’s what it required – an element of violence.”

Kidman’s words that ‘women go through this’ certainly ring true for women in South Africa as, according to the Teddy Bear Foundation, about 60 per cent of the women in South Africa are victims of gender violence, and between 800 to 900 children every year.

The Reeva Rebecca Steenkamp Foundation further states, “Violence inflicted by an intimate partner is the leading cause of death among South African women. And, in most of these cases, this began as domestic abuse, later escalating to murder/manslaughter.”

The foundations’ statements come during the 16 Days of Activism Against Women and Children Abuse, and, in the spirit of raising awareness for the fight against women and children abuse, they joined forces on the #BluePurpleBlack campaign.

Recently, we saw a similar campaign by actress Alyssa Milano, #MeToo.

These campaigns, like the 16 Days of Activism, are admirable and necessary to open up the conversation and, just like violent scenes in a television series, they can really make one pay attention about the extent of abuse in our communities, especially when figures are provided.

Abuse, however, is not limited to a time frame and so while these 16 days are vital, the education and provision of details of where one can seek help need to be year-round conversations.

Details: www.reevasteenkampfoundation.org or www.tbbc.org.za

Also read:

16 Days of Activism: What you need to know

Educating the youth about 16 Days of Activism