Technology and social media are rapidly changing the face of domestic and family violence (DFV) on the Mid North Coast, forcing services to adapt at speed.
“We've always seen coercion and power and control in intimate relationships, but with technology, it's taken it to a level that even we struggle to keep up with,” Kempsey Families CEO June Wilson told the Mid North Coaster.
The history: The not-for-profit Kempsey Families has operated in Kempsey for 32 years, launching as a parenting support program with three staff.
Today, it provides specialised domestic, family and sexual violence services, as well as intensive parenting support from Port Macquarie to the Nambucca Valley.
Power and control: Workers are regularly confronted with cases of coercive control, which is when a perpetrator will use a pattern of controlling behaviours to establish and maintain control over another person.
Experts say it is almost always an underlying dynamic of family and intimate partner violence.
Changing landscape: Wilson said rapid advances in technology have allowed coercive control to “take on a much more subtle form” in recent years.
“Now, it can be as simple as tracking someone through their phone or a device in their car.”
Other examples include secret audio or visual recording, social media stalking and harassment, monitoring messages and emails, and publishing private information or sexualised content without consent.
Darkside of the web: The lucrative nature of the internet has driven new trends of abuse and exploitation, Wilson said.
“For example, [perpetrators] drugging women and sexually assaulting them in an intimate partner relationship, then posting that online because there's a huge appetite for it and money to be made,” she said.
Relationship education: Wilson claims the organisation is currently receiving more referrals from younger people, which she partly attributes to the impact of social media.
“Social media is influencing a lot of the insights young people have about being in an intimate partner relationship, and this impacts the level of violence that's starting from very early on,” she said.
The response: The digital-led approach from perpetrators has meant services like Kempsey Families must adapt too.
“The use of social media and technology has really changed the way we need to learn and the way we need to respond. It's a huge shift, and it's a huge challenge to meet the required needs.”
Not so simple: Aside from technology, Wilson said many people attempting to leave coercive or violent relationships are forced to navigate a complex web of issues, which can include poverty and child protection matters.
The region’s housing shortage adds further layers of complexity.
“Finding safe places for women to escape to is a significant challenge,” she said.
Get involved: On Friday, October 30, Kempsey Families will host a Reclaim the Night march in West Kempsey, calling for an end to gendered violence.
“The march is about saying it should be safe for women and children to go out at night, particularly where rape and violence are prevalent after hours,” Wilson said.
The march will begin from the West Kempsey Hotel at 4:30pm and travel to the Bandbox Theatre, where the film How to Train Your Dragon will be screened from 5:30pm.
Seeking help: Kempsey Families is not an emergency or crisis service. To make a referral call (02) 6563 1588 or visit www.kempseyfamilies.org.au.
If you’re at immediate risk, you can call:
- Police: 000
- NSW Domestic Violence Line: 1800 656 463
- 1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732
- Kids Helpline: 1800 55 1800.