After a 35-year career with people with disabilities, Border resident and activist Jen Tait says she's yet to meet a person with a disability who hasn't been abused.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
This Sunday Ms Tait will speak about violence against people with a disability at a March 4 Justice gathering at Albury's QEII square, which aims to create awareness around family and domestic violence, and demand justice for victims.
Ms Tait said the statistics around abuse were horrifying.
"Women with a physical disability are twice as likely to suffer from domestic violence, when you get to people with intellectual disability and psychological disability the risk of violence goes up nearly three times more," she said.
"It's really terrifying actually, I knew it was high.
"I've been working with people with disabilities now for nearly 35 years either in a voluntary or work capacity and I am yet to meet a person with a disability who hasn't been physically, sexually, or verbally abused or undergone some kind of violence in their life.
Women with a physical disability are twice as likely to suffer from domestic violence
- Jen Tait
IN OTHER NEWS:
"I know too many tragic stories of what's happened to people and some of them have ended in death and the lifelong impacts of it as a vulnerable person are just horrifying."
Survivor-advocate and disability support worker Judy Langridge will also attend the gathering on Sunday, which starts at 11am.
"We're just going to gather with everyone across the nation and have a few speeches, tell a few stories, network with each other and take stock of where we are since last year's event," she said.
Ms Langridge said the event would be an opportunity to reflect on the action taken against violence in the aftermath of relatively recent revelations by the likes of Grace Tame and Brittany Higgins.
"Those women were able to stand up for the first time and tell their gory stories and expose that really hideous boil that really needs to be lanced," she said.
"They're really getting out there and baring their souls and that has sort of inspired this huge movement to be saying 'well, what are we doing about this?'
"The death rate hasn't dropped since the 90's when I was first assaulted, so what's happening? What's stopping proactive measures from governments? And what can we do about it? And why the hell are we still marching?"
Both Ms Tait and Ms Langridge encouraged men, women and all members of the community to join them at the gathering to show their support for preventing family and domestic violence.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark https://www.bordermail.com.au/
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter: @bordermail
- Follow us on Instagram @bordermail
- Follow us on Google News.