The Western Australian Museum hosted a community breakfast for people in and around Fremantle to help raise awareness of violence against women and to promote positive action to prevent it.

The breakfast is part of the Western Australian Government’s 16 Days in WA to Stop Violence Against Women campaign and was held on the lawn in front of the WA Shipwrecks Museum at Cliff Street in Fremantle from 8am to 9.30am on Wednesday 28 November. About 100 people attended.

WA Museum CEO Alec Coles said the breakfast event was just one of a number of events organised by the Museum to support this important Government campaign.

“Violence against women, particularly in the home, is an insidious, appalling and, regrettably, widespread problem, yet it is one that too often is ignored, tolerated or hidden. It is everyone’s responsibility to do what they can – as individuals and as organisations – to end violence against women and promote gender equality within Western Australian communities,” Mr Coles said.

“As an organisation at the heart of those communities, the WA Museum is proud to support this campaign, which has been made possible due the generous support of all our partners.”

Speakers at the breakfast included the Minister for Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence and Fremantle MLA, Simone McGurk.

“Museums are spaces for us to reflect on culture and artefacts from different periods in history; and reflect on changes in society including attitudes to violence against women,” Ms McGurk said.

“Bringing 16 Days in WA to the WA Shipwrecks Museum is a wonderful opportunity to discuss this very important and sometimes difficult community issue.

“The WA Museum, under the leadership of Alec Coles, has embraced its role as a contemporary facilitator of and contributor to community discussions.

“I thank them for their enthusiastic and ongoing support of 16 Days in WA.”

The breakfast was kindly donated by local Fremantle businesses. A gold coin donation from people attending will be passed to a women’s refuge.

The WA Museum would like to thank everyone who contributed to the community breakfast event including Char Char Bull Restaurant and Bar, RUAH Community Services, the Women’s Council for Domestic and Family Violence Services (WA), Fremantle Multicultural Centre, Fremantle Community Legal Centre and Woolworths South Fremantle.

More information about 16 Days in WA is available online at www.communities.wa.gov.au/16daysinWA

Media contacts:
Flora Perrella
Media and Communications Coordinator   
Western Australian Museum
(08) 6552 7804
flora.perrella@museum.wa.gov.au