The Australian Law Reform Commission Report on the Family Law System: Implications for Domestic Violence

Posted by Molly on 12 April, 2019

The Australian Law Reform Commission Report on the Family Law System: Implications for Domestic Violence

The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) Review of the Family Law System is the first comprehensive review of Australia’s family law system since its commencement more than 40 years ago.The ALRC Report on the Review of the Family Law System findings and recommendations have serious implications for domestic violence, and women and children will be deeply affected by how they are implemented. Please join us for an interactive discussion and networking luncheon to consider the report and recommendations for domestic violence cases as part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

This is a partnership event between Brisbane Domestic Violence Service and QUT Law. Read more

Report of Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law Enforcement (PJCLE) Inquiry into the Impact of New and Emerging Information and Communication Technology

Posted by Brigid on 8 April, 2019

Dr Monique Mann

Crime Justice and Social Democracy Research Centre member Dr Monique Mann, along with colleagues from Deakin University (Dr Ian Warren and Dr Adam Molnar) and the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Dr Angela Daly) have been extensively cited in the final report of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law Enforcement (PJCLE) Inquiry into the Impact of New and Emerging Information and Communication Technology.

Their joint programme of research in surveillance and cybercrime (including transnational online policing, darkweb policing, Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties, big data policing, encryption policy, biometrics, and 3D printed firearms) was cited twenty-nine times in the report.

Their research is highly critical of the human rights implications of new technologies in policing, and it clearly shaped the report, directly influencing the recommendations handed down by the PCJLE, which can be found here: https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/publications/tabledpapers/02593c55-f6db-4432-85c7-e0ba89b0e21b/upload_pdf/PJCLE_Impact%20of%20emerging%20info%20and%20comms%20tech_April%202019.pdf;fileType=ap plication%2Fpdf#search=%22publications/tabledpapers

Drs Mann and Molnar appeared before the committee to give oral evidence in March 2018, and their opening statement to the Parliamentary Joint Committee can be found here: https://privacy.org.au/2018/03/30/statement-to-the-parliamentary-joint-committee-on-law-enforcement/

Their original full submission provided to the Inquiry, representing all digital rights civil society organisations in Australia, can be found here: https://eprints.qut.edu.au/116090/

Reflections on Women, Men, Sexual Violence, and #MeToo

Posted by Brigid on 2 April, 2019

Qld Police Commissioner Ian Stewart, Centre Director Prof. Melissa Bull, Prof. James Messerschmidt, Belinda Cox, Assoc. Prof. Michael Flood

The #MeToo movement has drawn national and global attention to the problems of sexual harassment and abuse. A recent, popular public event at the Queensland University of Technology explored the #MeToo campaign, how women and men have responded to it, and the roles that men can play in building a community free of sexual violence and abuse.

The public event, titled “Reflections on Women, Men, Sexual Violence, and #MeToo”, examined the promise and pitfalls of current efforts to end sexual violence, and the role of men in sexual violence prevention. The buzz of conversation during and after the event was a clear sign that it had prompted thought and reflection.

Two leading international experts presented to the 90 or so researchers, professionals, and community members in attendance. James W. Messerschmidt is a Distinguished University Professor of Sociology at the University of Southern Maine, USA, author of the recent book Hegemonic Masculinity, and an Adjunct Professor at QUT’s School of Justice, and the event was timed to take advantage of his visit to QUT. Dr Michael Flood is an Associate Professor at QUT and author of Engaging Men and Boys in Violence Prevention. The event was chaired by Belinda Cox, a longstanding domestic violence advocate.

Attendees at the event included Police Commissioner Ian Stewart, Deputy Commissioner Michael Wassing of the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, Professor Belinda Carpenter, Assistance Dean (Research) in the QUT Faculty of Law, and a host of others.

There was lively discussion after Messerschmidt’s and Flood’s presentations. Some participants took up Messerschmidt’s assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the #MeToo campaign. They asked: does #MeToo include the experiences of women beyond the white, wealthy Hollywood celebrities on whom the media has focused? Will the campaign lead to real social change? Other participants asked about the challenges of engaging men in positive change. What role can fathers play in encouraging non-violent futures for their sons and daughters? How do we make sure that women’s voices continue to be heard? And, above all, how can we encourage well-meaning men to take part in working for change?

Book Launch: Challenging the Human Trafficking Narrative: Victims, Villians and Heroes

Posted by Brigid on 29 March, 2019

Challenging the Human Trafficking Narrative : Victims, Villains and Heroes by CJSDRC member, Dr Erin O’Brien was launched last night at Avid Bookstore West End, by Professor Kerry Carrington. It was a full house attended by a large audience.

The book is published in a Routledge book series Victims, Culture and Society co-edited by her and Professor Sandra Walklate, from University of Liverpool

Concerns about victimisation, as well as the politics of victimisation, have multiplied over the last 50 years. The book series Victims, Culture and Society explores the major concepts, debates and controversies that this concern has generated. As the impact of globalisation, the movement of peoples, the divergences between the global north and the global south have become ever more apparent, this series provides an authoritative space for original contributions in making sense of these far reaching social, political and cultural changes. These issues by their very nature demand an interdisciplinary approach outside conventional conceptual boundaries. Victims, Culture and Society offers the space for that voice. Erin’s book – which draws upon a range of interdisciplinary insights, from political theory, feminism, criminology and sociology, is therefore an ideal fit for the series. In it Erin deconstructs the familiar story of an Ideal victim of human trafficking, A foreign villain and a Western Hero, and interrogates the discourses and assumptions embedded in this over-simplified and caricatured narrative by turning it on its head. Why do dominant victim narratives construct a hierarchy between ideal and undeserving victims? Why do these narratives construct victims as hapless with no agency? Why are some victims narratives more prominent than others?
Why are the villains always foreign, ’undesirable others’ Johns, or pimps from gangs or organised crime?
What’s the role of the consumers in the sex industry? Are they villains or heros?
And why are the heros in dominant narratives about human trafficking nearly always white anti-trafficking activists and govts from the global north?

Erin’s book provides a beautifully crafted and engaging response to these questions.

Further information about the book can be found here:

https://www.routledge.com/Challenging-the-Human-Trafficking-Narrative-Victims-Villains-and-Heroes/OBrien/p/book/9781138858978

Webinar: Using App-Based and Sensing Methods for Social Science Research

Posted by Brigid on 29 March, 2019

Last week, CJSDRC researcher Dr Michael Chataway, and Dr Reka Solymosi from the University of Manchester presented a webinar on app based and sensing methods for social science research.

The webinar, co-hosted by the UK Data Service and Methods@Manchester was designed to discuss the use of mobile apps and sensing technologies in the social sciences, with a particular focus on measuring context-dependent fear of crime. The webinar was attended by over 70 individuals from academic, private, and public sectors.

The webinar and PowerPoint slides can be accessed here: https://www.ukdataservice.ac.uk/news-and-events/eventsitem/?id=5461

Researcher Bio’s:

Reka Solymosi is a lecturer in quantitative methods focused on making use of new forms of data to gain insight into people’s behaviour and subjective experiences, particularly focusing on crime, transport, and spatial research. She is also interested in promoting data literacy.

Michael Chataway is a lecturer at the School of Justice, Queensland University of Technology. His research focuses on measuring and responding to fear of crime using mobile technologies. Michael’s other research interests include social geography, environmental psychology, and digital methods.

Prof. Kerry Carrington: United Nations Commission on the Status of Women #CSW63

Posted by Brigid on 22 March, 2019

Our very own Head of School, Professor Kerry Carrington, is speaking at the United Nations 63rd Commission on the Status of Women NGO Sessions in New York today. Kerry will present with a member of her research team and QUT PhD student, Maria Victoria Puyol.

Kerry will present her research findings into women’s only police stations in Argentina and their impact on preventing gendered violence. This is a practical and successful response to the United Nations sustainable development goal to eliminate violence against women.

Kerry appeared on ABC Radio National Law Report on 19 March to talk about her research. Listen to her interview here

You can download the presentation here

Amazing research impact. Congratulations Kerry from all of us at QUT School of Justice.

Presentation: Reflections on women, men, sexual violence and #MeToo

Posted by Brigid on 21 March, 2019

(L-R) Police Commissioner Ian Stewart; Director, CJSDRC Professor Melissa Bull; Professor James W. Messerschmidt; Belinda Cox and Associate Professor Michael Flood

Last night QUT’s CJSDRC hosted two leading international scholars who reflected on the #MeToo movement and the promise and pitfalls of current efforts to end sexual violence, and the role of men in sexual violence prevention.

Distinguished University Professor of Sociology and Chair of the Criminology Department at the University of Southern Maine, USA, James W. Messerschmidt and our own Associate Professor Michael Flood drew on their experiences as scholars and activists in the gender violence field to lead a provocative workshop that asked, What does #MeToo mean for men and women? How should men and women respond? What roles in particular can men play in building a community free of sexual violence and abuse? What does the research tell us is effective in engaging men in this work? More widely, what are the strengths and limitations of #MeToo as a way of organising against sexual violence?

Unsurprisingly this stimulated animated discussion between the presenters and the nearly 100 workshop participants who included practitioners who work with offenders and victims, legal advocates, police, academics, community members and white ribbon ambassadors. The workshop demonstrated that while #MeToo might not be the answer, it has simulated new and important conversations that could contribute to the prevention of a disturbingly prevalent and serious social problem.

Essay-“Ordinary People”-Dr Dean Biron

Posted by Brigid on 5 March, 2019

School of Justice affiliated academic Dr Dean Biron has published an essay titled “Ordinary People,” which appears in the Autumn 2019 edition of Meanjin Quarterly.

“Ordinary People” is a quasi-memoir piece reflecting upon the author’s experience of dealing with historical sexual abuse investigations while working as a detective in the Queensland Police Service between 1998 and 2004. The essay considers the impediments to justice faced by abuse victims and concludes by suggesting that their extraordinary courage can help provide a paradigm for broader social reform in Australia.

Dean’s previous writing has appeared in such publications as Child Abuse & Neglect, The Journal of Family Violence, Overland, Children Australia, Metro Magazine, Thesis Eleven, Rock Music Studies and Portal: the Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies. His contribution to Meanjin’s “What I’m Reading” blog series will appear in April.

Dean is currently teaching in QUT Justice undergraduate subjects ‘Deviance’ and ‘Policing in Context’. A full copy of the essay can be found here – https://meanjin.com.au/current-edition/

Workshop – Bogota Universidad Catolica de Colombia – 6-8 November 2019

Posted by Brigid on 1 March, 2019

Conflict, Power and Justice in the Global South

Academic knowledge about conflict, power and justice has generally been sourced from a select number of countries from the Global North, whose journals, conferences, publishers and universities dominate the intellectual landscape. In the last decades, there have been substantial efforts to undo these colonized ways of producing knowledge in this field.

This three-day workshop in Colombia brings together scholars, practitioners and activists from across the globe to contribute to this task of southernizing and democratising knowledge.

The workshop aims to link northern and southern activists and scholars in a collective project to create globally connected critical and innovative knowledges. It builds upon the international workshop on Southern Criminology co-hosted by QUT and Universidad Nacional del Litoral, Argentina in November 2018; and seeks to combine presentations with group discussions around the theoretical and conceptual foundations of the Southern Criminology project.

This workshop will be co-hosted by Queensland University of Technology, Australia; Universidad Autónoma de México; Universidad Católica Colombia; University of Essex, UK; Universidad Nacional del Litoral, Argentina; University of Northumbria, UK; and, University of Oslo, Norway.

Abstracts of 250 words

Due 30 June 2019

Early submission advised as the workshop is limited to 100

Email to: justice@qut.edu.au

The workshop will be convened in two languages: Spanish and English. Selected papers will be published as a Special Edition of Critical Criminology