Acknowledgement of Country

Everything that happens on this continent is happening on stolen land. It always was and always will be, Aboriginal land. 

Safety Measures acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the traditional and ongoing custodians of the lands on which we live and work.  We pay respects to Elders past and present. We acknowledge that sovereignty has never been ceded and recognise First Nations peoples’ rights to self-determination and continuing connections to land, waters, community and culture.  

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities are richly diverse, with hundreds of distinct Nations, languages and cultural practices that have thrived for tens of thousands of years. The imposition of hierarchal, patriarchal systems by colonisers undermined traditional gender roles and dynamics within Aboriginal cultures, replacing them with constructs that perpetuate inequality and violence.  

Today, the intersection of colonial legacies and policies with race, class, gender, sexuality and disability creates barriers to accessing support and intensifies people’s experiences of violence and exclusion. Understanding this is crucial to addressing domestic and family violence.  

Aboriginal women experience grossly disproportionate rates and impacts of domestic and family violence, and non-Aboriginal organisations have a responsibility not only to recognise the ways they uphold colonial structures, but to actively centre Aboriginal perspectives and leadership in all efforts to address this.  

The structures, norms, and inequities embedded through colonisation affect not only Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities but the entire social fabric of Australia. Addressing violence requires dismantling these deeply ingrained systems and promoting equity, accountability, and culturally responsive approaches for all communities.