The 111 files: Words of action mobilising change

Inspector Bruce Horne.

For 24 years, between 1965 and 1989, Nicolae Ceausescu was the head of state in Romania. He ruled with an iron fist and his regime was notorious for its repressive brutality. If you were born in Romania in 1965 you would have grown-up knowing nothing but the severe, controlling environment of the Ceausescu regime, living every day in the fear of his secret police force. With limited access to the outside world it would have been hard to imagine life being any different. But suddenly, and to the surprise of the whole world, Ceausescu's government was overthrown in December, 1989. How? Because a few people decided "enough was enough" and started a conversation.

In Canada, in 1991, one woman confronted three men - Jack Layton, Ron Sluser and Michael Kaufman - about the problem of family violence.

That one conversation was the catalyst for many others and a few months later those three men had developed a plan to raise awareness of the problem of family violence and to bring about positive change. It was called the White Ribbon Campaign.

Less than 10 years later their strategy was endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly. The UN declared November 25 as the International Day for eliminating violence against women. Within 20 years of its launch, White Ribbon had been adopted by more than 70 countries. All of this was the result of four people having a conversation about the possibility of change.

The lesson from both of these stories is that conversations can be powerful.

A conversation, among a small group of Romanians, started a movement that would change the political landscape of their country.

Similarly, within 10 years of three men having a conversation about reducing family violence, their plan was endorsed by the UN and adopted around the world.

Both stories show that if you can mobilise a community through the power of conversation, you can build momentum for change. That is the power and the genius of the White Ribbon campaign.

This year Mayor Steve Chadwick and a number of community leaders have agreed to support police and other social agencies in extending the local White Ribbon Campaign from the customary 16 days of action, to 16 months. Why? Because the research tells us that an effective White Ribbon campaign is one of the best tools available for mobilising a community against family violence. Next week I will outline some simple things you can do to support the reduction of family violence in our community. If you don't want to wait, email me at bruce.horne@police.govt.nz.