This blog is part of a series where we explore the 3 recommendations from ACWS’s response to the National End to End GBV
- Provide a stronger system of care for survivors and their families
- Strengthen primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention as well as intervention efforts
- Advocate for more responsive legal and justice systems, with partnership from the federal level
What is Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary prevention?
- Primary Prevention takes place BEFORE violence initially occurs. This would be programs or strategies designed to reduce factors that put people at risk for experiencing violence or to protect or bugger people from violence.
- Secondary Prevention takes place AFTER a violent event. This is short-term consequences and focusses on the immediate needs of the victim – emergency services, medical care, and programming for the clients who stay at Jessie’s House.
- Tertiary Prevention also takes place AFTER a violent event. This long-term approach may include rehabilitation of the perpetrator or social services to lessen emotional trauma to the victim. This also ties into our other two recommendations of a stronger system of care for survivors and a more responsive legal and justice system.
Shelters and second-stage housing programs like Jessie’s House and Eileen’s Place are crucial intervention efforts to support survivors of domestic violence. However, our vision is a future free of domestic violence for all individuals, which will require primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention efforts as well.
Experts say that more focus is needed on men in preventing domestic abuse.
“It’s horrific, it’s an extreme form of violence and misogyny and sexism fuels into that,” said Wells, a member of the U of C’s social work faculty. “The burden of safety falls on the victim, it needs to fall on the perpetrator — our resources need to target men and boys . . . we need to manage their anger and sexual function.”
If we are truly to end gender-based violence, we need men to take a stand against abuse. This includes offering supports to would-be abusers and men who have been involved with police for violent crimes. Wells says that men should be offered services to defuse domestic problems, and ensure they’re followed up.
But it will also take other men, good men, to become allies and leaders in the fight against domestic violence. We have seen the Alberta Council for women’s Shelters (ACWS) launch Leading Change with a focus on men and boys uniting against violence. The Centre for Sexuality in Calgary developed WiseGuyz, a male-identified program for individuals in grade 9 to develop healthy relationships and reflect in harmful gender stereotypes.
This year we launched our own gender-based violence prevention program, which includes public education targeted at men and boys. This initiative includes an expansion of our award-winning Inspire Program to include a cohort for boys and community-based education sessions for the public, but with a particular focus on enlisting men in change. Topics include an introduction on the history and intersections of gender-based violence, but ultimately, we plan to foster leadership skills in men and boys so they can help us achieve our vision of a future free of abuse.
As we continue our public education, we hope that our supporters will help us spread the message that domestic violence is not okay. We hope that our community will come together to help us foster healthy relationships and achieve our vision of a future free of domestic violence for all individuals.
