95743 Chap.9 Domestic and Family Violence in CALD Communities
Domestic and Family Violence in CALD Communities
A case study in engagement
Module 5 uses family and domestic violence within culturally and linguistically diverse communities to study how services engage specific populations.
Its outcomes cover recognising examples, culturally informed services, different cultural framings of the issue, risk factors and intersectional prevention.
Culture without stereotype
The set reading rejects the claim that violence is simply part of another group's culture, arguing that every culture is patriarchal to some degree and that cultures are fluid and internally contested.
It also rejects cultural relativism, which excuses harm in the name of respect.
The refugee experience
Violence in refugee families is traced to the meeting of patriarchal norms with war, a long and unsafe journey and the stresses of resettlement, which together put pressure on men's sense of identity.
The reading closes with principles for practitioners and community programs, framing domestic violence as a violation of human rights.
What this chapter covers
- 01
Module 5 outcomes and content warning
- 02
Why 'part of their culture' is reductionist
- 03
Cultural relativism and the practitioner's tightrope
- 04
Three stages of becoming a refugee
- 05
Pressures on men during resettlement
- 06
Principles for practitioners
- 07
Community and human rights approaches
Worked example · free
Match family pressures to the three stages of the refugee journey
- 1Fact (a) belongs to war and civil conflict; trauma from fighting can leave lasting hyperarousal, one of the pressures James links to violence.
- 1Fact (b) belongs to the refugee journey; years in a protracted situation without services add hardship and leave health needs untreated.
- 1Fact (c) belongs to resettlement; losing the breadwinner role and status within the family challenges the father's identity.
Key terms
- Cultural Relativism
- An outsider's acceptance of harmful practices because they appear to belong to another culture.
- Essentialist View
- A view of culture as fixed and the same for everyone within it, which the set reading rejects.
- Protracted Refugee Situation
- A long period, often years or decades, in which refugees live in camps or enclaves without a durable solution.
- Human Rights Framework
- An approach in which community groups identify the rights they lack, opening discussion of violence as a rights violation.
Domestic and Family Violence in CALD Communities FAQ
What does the reading mean by calling domestic violence a human rights issue?
James argues that violence in the home is more than a gender issue, because it violates women's human rights. Framing it this way lets services challenge abuse without condemning a whole culture, and in her community groups it helped men and women recognise violence as wrong.
What principles should practitioners follow with refugee families?
The reading stresses earning trust through confidentiality and kept agreements, flexibility such as home visits to isolated women, client self-determination, understanding each person's whole journey, earning credibility by learning about their history, asking in a normalising way and taking the removal of children very seriously.
How can a community program reduce violence?
According to the reading, the greatest traction comes from working with a defined community through men's and women's groups and their leaders, honouring cultural difference while challenging abuse, for example through cultural circles or a human rights framework.
What should I do if this module raises personal concerns?
The Module 5 pages carry a content warning and remind students that everyone has a right to be safe. In New South Wales the Domestic Violence Line is 1800 656 463, and the Module 5 pages list further help lines, so reach out to one of them or to someone you trust.
Assessment move
Learn the three stages in order with one pressure for each, and the six pressures on men as a list. Practise explaining the difference between respecting culture and cultural relativism in two sentences. Look after yourself while studying this module: its pages carry a content warning, and support lines are listed on Canvas.
For the pitch, the reading's principles of trust, flexibility and community leadership transfer well to any sensitive health issue. When you discuss this topic in a workshop or an assessment, describe pressures and risk factors without implying that any culture causes violence, which is the reductionist view the reading argues against.
