This post was originally published in October for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. As you know, in Australia, we have been in a femicide epidemic since 2022.

Every 4 days in Australia in 2024, another woman is murdered by a man.

Usually a man she knows.

Usually, she is a First Nations woman, or a disabled woman, who are both attacked and murdered at much higher rates than others.

Almost always, the attacker is a straight, white male.

This matters. It matters so much.

No one deserves to be brutally murdered, like these women have been. No one.

And especially as you will see below, most of these murders could have been easily prevented by police, courts, and the government.

So we have to condemn men’s violence against women, by talking about them until it changes.

Until the governments believe us, and act on it.

Until the police believe us, and act on it.

Until the courts believe us, and act on it.

Today, I’ll be focussing on the ways the police in every state and territory across Australia has been failing women, children, women of colour, non-binary people, trans people, queer people, etc.

This choice to focus on the police is validated by the fact that so many states’ police forces tried in 2024 to suppress the results of internal and external investigations that showed they were failing DFV victims.

For example, it was uncovered in October 2024 that Queensland Police Service (QPS) had deliberately blocked “damaging” reports about their Service Delivery Program’s dealings with DFV victims. Internal emails about Queensland Police’s failure were confirmed by direct quotes from their own leadership.

Throughout this post, I’ve linked to reports about police failing to catch male killers and failing to protect the women and children whom these killers targeted.

What you need to know about women’s lives and men’s violence while reading this article

I want to honour the lives of the 102 women killed by men in 2024, because they are so much more than just statistics.

Each of them were loved by family and friends.

I have included links to my main sources for this information, including the amazing resources created by journalist Sherele Moody. I have tried to source only articles that included names and photographs after seeking consent from the families of these women; however, the media doesn’t always do this, so I couldn’t always find respectful sources. If you are a First Nations reader, please know that some of the articles I’ve linked to include photographs of the women who were killed.

I have also made my best attempt to uncover the correct gender identity and pronouns for each of these people, and after more than 2 days of research, I have reached the limits of what I can find out online for free. If you find any misgendering errors, please let me know and I will update this article with sincere apologies. I want to stop men’s violence against all humans, whether they are women, children, people of colour, non-binary people, trans people, other men, etc.

Finally, I could not write about men’s violence against women in Australia without acknowledging the atrocities that male political leaders, male soldiers, male police, and other men are committing right now across the world. War, genocide, and other violence against women continues unchecked in Gaza, Lebanon, Sudan, Darfur, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ukraine, Afghanistan, Syria, and many more countries as I write this.

What can I do to stop domestic violence in Australia?

For those who cannot read about injustice without acting on it – like me – I recommend these actions:

• If you’re a man, I want to see you posting about domestic violence issues. I firmly believe all men should be actively working to prevent men’s violence against women and children, and demanding systemic changes from the government so that victim-survivors can leave and stay safe. What about “not all men”? No. Until all men are actively campaigning to stop men’s violence … it is all men.
• Donate to your local DV support services, or to the families. Women’s shelters, domestic violence shelters, and DV support services are all ridiculously underfunded by local, state, and federal governments. In 2024 alone, many DV shelters have had to close their doors, including the one that was controversially closed by the Perth Mayor and WA Premier. If you can afford it, give a little – every little bit helps, and it’s tax-deductible. If you prefer to donate directly to the families of these 63+ women, you can find and donate to their GoFundMe campaigns, to help them raise money for funeral or memorial services.
• Email your federal and state Members of Parliament (MP). You can find the contact details for Queensland MPs easily, and you can usually find contact details for most federal Senators and MPs. Ask them which women’s shelters and women’s legal services they are directly funding, and demand that they pay more. Tell them to increase staffing at courthouses, so that victim-survivors can get DV protection orders faster. In Queensland, it currently takes up to 2 years to get a protection order that only lasts 5 years. Australia has a budget surplus in 2024 – THE GOVERNMENT CAN AFFORD TO DO BETTER!
• Send a complaint to Centrelink, who routinely denies DV victim-survivors the financial help they need: the Crisis Payment for Extreme Circumstances Family and Domestic Violence, and the separate Escaping Violence Payment (EVP) program. Tell Centrelink to hire more people for their DV section and their Families Line. Because DV victim-survivors should be waiting on the phone for hours every day for weeks, just to hear, when they finally reach the top of the queue, “We can’t help you.” It’s not good enough. Australia’s budget surplus means the government – through Services Australia and Centrelink – can afford to help more vulnerable women and children than they do.
• Send a complaint to the Police Commissioner in your state or territory about one of the 63+ women who have died this year so far. Ask the commissioner what they are doing today to prevent any other women dying in their state or territory. Because as you will see from the below records, many of these women would still be alive today if police would just do their damn jobs.
• If you know a lawyer or have a lawyer, ask them how many pro bono cases they take on. Every lawyer in Australia should be helping at least one domestic violence victim-survivor with trying to get protection orders, parenting orders, Victim Assist payments, home loan contracts, workplace harassment suits, Wills and estates, and more. All of these factors can force victims to stay with violent men or stay in bad situations, unless they have the money to hire a lawyer – which most women do not.
• If you’re worried about someone you know, phone your local police station and ask to speak to a sergeant. Ask them to make a “welfare check” and put it on record that you have reported concerns about someone’s violence or concerns for someone’s safety. Our taxpayer dollars are paying these cops’ salaries. It is literally their job to go and check that violent men are staying away from women and children like they should be. As you’ll see in the article below, most of these women’s bodies were only discovered because friends and family told police to go look.
• Worried for your own safety? Call 000 in an emergency. Or call the 24/7 DV counselling line 1800 RESPECT. First Nations women can call 13YARN Crisis Supporters 24/7 on 13 92 76, for help that’s designed by mob for mob. And even if the police haven’t been helpful before, report every incident to them on 000 or PoliceLink, and ask them for an incident report number. Queensland Police has a “vulnerable person” SMS service you can register for, so you can text them to make a report.

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