I feel like I'm waking from a docile sleep. Why have we spent thousands of years accepting that some men are no different to wild animals? That we must avoid their habitat like we are prey, and they are dangerous beasts. If you want to know what it feels like to be a woman walking alone at night, then go swim with hungry sharks or take a chance with lions and bears. That fear of being attacked at any moment is ever present for women. But why do we accept that some men are just prone to commit these hideous acts? Why do we accept that some men are just like animals and we say; "oh that's terrible someone would do that, make sure you avoid running into those evil men. Don't walk alone."
But why aren't we saying that it's completely unacceptable that some men turn out this way in the first place? Why aren't we suggesting that humanity needs to work together to find a way to fix the damaged and disgusting habits of these men?
Tonight I stood with an incredible crowd of 10 thousand people at the Princes Park Vigil in honour of Eurydice Dixon who was raped and murdered there last week. As the lights went down and the entire pitch was filled with candlelight I found myself reflecting on what she must been feeling, seeing and hearing that awful night. There was a man standing just in front of me, I looked at him as tears began streaming down his face and I realised they were streaming down mine also. There are beautiful men in this world, and there are evil men in this world, but we can no longer let there be a divide between good men and bad men. For every woman mistreated, for every woman attacked. Please, for the love of our daughters, sisters, mothers, aunts and best friends, please teach little boys about love and how to treat woman. Please tell your child's school you want it taught, please tell your local council you want it taught. Please teach it yourself.
If we continue to accept that some men are like wild animals, they will continue to behave like them. It's time to fix this.
#womensrights #safety #domesticviolence #violenceaginstwomen #womenssaftey #genderequality #selfcare #personaldevelopment #growth #mentalhealthawareness #creativewriting #raisinghealthymen #wisdom #community #futuregrowth
Alicia Pavlis is a writer, actor, musician, filmmaker, photographer, visual artist, and content producer. She is passionate about progressive topics and is also an advocate for mental health awareness. All writing, artwork and content expressed on this site are Alicia's own views and intellectual property, protected by Australian copyright law, reproduction, distribution or publication without Alicia Pavlis' permission is prohibited.
Follow Alicia on Instagram, Facebook & Twitter: @aliciapavlis