Amid the annual 16 Days of Activism on the issue, Graeme has highlighted the role of all men in addressing gender-based violence.
Earlier this year, he became an Angus Ambassador for the White Ribbon Campaign, which focuses on men speaking out on misogyny and violence against women. He has said that, to tackle the problem globally and locally, there needs to be a concerted effort all year round by men to challenge the behaviour of others, educate younger men and change societal attitudes.
This comes after a Wednesday 29th November debate in the Scottish Parliament marked the 16 Days, with MSPs urged to commit to 16 Actions that can help end violence against women and girls.
Aimed primarily at male parliamentarians, but also designed for all MSPs to engage with, the 16 actions encourage elected members and other community representatives to take forward and work towards these goals for the 12 months leading up to next year’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence.
The list of 16 actions were created in collaboration with specialist and expert organisations such as White Ribbon Scotland and Zero Tolerance. They include proactively and reactively condemning and challenging behaviours and attitudes which contribute to violence, and seeking out opportunities, with local and national organisations who support those affected, to hear the accounts of survivors.
UN analysis shows that one in three women worldwide experience physical or sexual violence, mostly by an intimate partner.
I’m Graeme’s Parliamentary Assistant based at Holyrood, but I support his constituency work as well. Having been Caseworker to an Aberdeenshire MP some years prior, joining Graeme's team in 2019 was a return to this line of work from a role in fundraising.