JAS Rawlinson wants to make sure nobody has to stand alone in the shadows of violence and coercion.
As a survivor of domestic and sexual violence, Ms Rawlinson will draw on her own experiences to empower others to detect the red flags of coercive control, assert boundaries and reclaim their story at a free event in Cessnock for the International 16 Days of Action Against Gender-Based Violence.
"As someone who grew up in a home with really severe emotional abuse, where there was coercive control and financial control, it was really difficult as a young person and that has influenced the work I do today," Ms Rawlinson said.
"When I was going through this, which was between the ages of really 10 to 18, there was no awareness or education around coercive control, so for me I didn't know what to call this thing that was going on in our home.
"So being able to educate people now and be an advocate, especially on the warning signs that often precede physical violence is really rewarding for me, but it's really important work to continue on."
The 16 Days of Activism is an international campaign started by the Women's Global Leadership Institute in 1991.
It begins on November 25, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and runs until December 10, Human Rights Day, each year.
The aim is to call for the prevention and elimination of violence against women and girls.
Ms Rawlinson will speak specifically about the three main red flags of coercive control and how community members can set strong boundaries in their lives to keep them safe, whether that's with family, intimate partner relationships or the workplace.
"Anybody can be a perpetrator and anybody can be a victim, which is one of the main messages I want to get across to people," she said.
"Even though we've done so much work to educate people in the community around domestic violence, there are a lot of people, particularly young people, who still don't understand that emotional abuse is actually abuse.
"Our young people are especially vulnerable because many of them are going into their first relationships, so you don't know that you don't know what you don't know."
Ms Rawlinson will not only teach community members about how to identify signs of coercive control but will provide tangible tools to put boundaries in place to keep them safe.
She hopes her lived experience will help give people a deeper understanding of red flags, how they might present in different relationships and uplift them to recognise that they deserve to feel respected and at peace.
"I want people to understand that trauma doesn't have to be a life sentence," she said.
"It doesn't mean that your trauma will just magically disappear and everything will be fine once you've gotten out of that particular situation.
"But I do believe that it doesn't have to be something that destroys our lives and holds us back."
Ms Rawlinson is also an author and will be hosting a half-day advocacy writing workshop in Cessnock for those who want to learn how to write their story in an empowering way.
From Shame to Strength: A Community Conversation to Empower is on at Performance Arts Culture Cessnock on November 27 and is free to attend.
For tickets visit cessnock.nsw.gov.au/libraries.
The writing workshop is on November 28 and spots are limited, for bookings contact jessica.elliott@cessnock.nsw.gov.au.
- If you or someone you know is experiencing, or at risk of experiencing domestic, family or sexual violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, text 0458 737 732, online chat and video call via www.1800respect.org.au
