Absolutely no disrespect here from one who is involved. Lately I’ve thought a lot about the whole ‘domestic’ violence ‘thing’ and this piece is my drawing together of some ideas – at a most early stage.
My thoughts accelerated in Melbourne when I happened to attend a commemorative event for a wonderful friend, Lorraine Elliot. ACMI (Australian Centre for the Moving Image), in concert with Lorraine’s family, launched a new partnership/foundation, the “Lorraine Elliot AM Education Fund”. ACMI’s promotional flyer state the intent is to provide strong education support for girls/ladies.
At the event the guests previewed “Suffragettes”, the movie. A fitting, engaging event, memorable for various complicated reasons I am still devolving. Firstly, because the movie is extraordinarily powerful in itself.
Secondly, this vital story provided an eloquent demonstration of the huge power inherent in the medium. The story and the communication medium worked to superbly convey a strong cultural message.
Third, in this cultural commodity is a vital message, yet it is a message currently under concerted attack – and by attacks in extraordinarily diverse forms. Attacks consistently carried out throughout the world.
Forth, this message in the movie and the story properly delivered – to an audience which contained a most powerful, and ‘estranged’ key public.
And, fifthly, post-viewing it was stunningly clear this movie succeeded in converting attitudes held by some number of that important audience. As a result, being in the ACMI centre immediately after the movie was electrifying. Why so?
Well, firstly, Lorraine Elliot was widely loved and admired on many levels. So, in addition to many girls and ladies, a great many men, young and old, were in the audience.
Electrifying, because of the large number – of men – who could be heard admitting, often with bewilderment, the movie had stunned them, shown them many matters (about life as another sex, in their own environment) they were unaware of – till then.
After the movie one young man said to me:”it’s a movie that should be mandatory viewing for every single male”.
This, and other open and honest male admissions starkly demonstrated, to me, as committed student of our modern communication modes & of many of our puzzling problems today, how many of our ‘cross-gender’ and other difficulties stem from an unknowing-ness of all others.
So this was an extraordinary evening, the movie, the prior and post events. All caused me to think deeply about a second matter, a subject that is always with us.
How how we (any/all ‘people/s’ – as that’s what we ALL are, even today) communicate. If you will, (as I’m quite sure you can, in your mind’s eye), visualise. That which we engage in every second of every day – communication. Consider for a few minutes each of two examples – of various key parts of ‘discrimination in communication as subject’:
Why – is “Domestic Violence” so appallingly, improperly, and inappropriately titled? What should this monstrous matter be termed?
Why – do we ‘need’ a “Minister for Women”? When, apparently we don’t need, as we don’t have, (do we, in any form?) a “Minister for Men”? Why don’t we properly rid ourselves of this contradiction?
Possibly because we are, all, so very often, still, totally unaware. Yet very possibly, you, as have I, come across these types of ‘divide’ many times in the past. Like me, you have possibly discussed this matter – in terms related to matters other than ‘communication’.
What occurs (it seems to me) is: unless we ‘ordinary people’ have experienced that “thing” (whatever it may be) – personally, in some manner – we often cannot actually ‘enter’ into visualising the matter properly.
So we cannot understand – as we cannot teach ourselves what is actually occurring to the other person, or persons, what they are experiencing in their space.Each about the other, equally. I propose we begin an identification of processes that will give us these skills.
Peace, love, justice, laughter, happiness, X old Susanne
susanneah 