Many people from CALD backgrounds approach NCC staff about friends, family or community members who are victims/survivors of DFV and have experienced multiple levels of discrimination due to their gender, race and ethnicity.

On the Sunshine Coast the reporting of DFV incidents by CALD women is lower than English speaking women. Women on temporary visas fear deportation. They may be economically dependent on the perpetrator and isolated from their cultural communities.

NCC staff strive to apply an intersectionality lens when advocating for social, political and legal change.

In 2022 Nambour Community Centre initiated 3 projects to raise awareness of DFV.
• A social media campaign, featuring CALD women, raised awareness that women had rights, there is support available and domestic violence can take many different forms.
• A photo exhibition featuring the work of Ukrainian photographer Natalie Maro. Portraits of women from different cultural backgrounds holding a sign written in their native language saying “I have rights” were displayed. Accompanying text showed the words women may hear in domestic and family violence situations that are intended to cause offence or harm. Knowing these words may help women recognise when violence is occurring and allow them to take appropriate steps.
• Discussions with cultural community leaders about how they can be empowered to educate others in their community about rights/legal services.

The proposed presentation will highlight the strengths, weaknesses and impacts of these 3 projects.

NCC workers support those from CALD backgrounds who have experienced DFV or witnessed it amongst their friends, family or work colleagues. We will share how we have navigated with CALD clients the complexities of CPS, family and dv court, language and financial barriers, interactions with police and government agencies eg Centrelink, Housing, Immigration, NDIS. We will suggest ways to move forward including community led responses.