Could The Olympics Cause Domestic Violence?

On Saturday a friend of mine, a fellow rugby fan, asked me if I'd seen the domestic violence awareness ads that ran during the Men's Rugby World Cup last autumn. I'm currently starting a piece of research for my Masters looking at museums responses to the issue of domestic violence and so it's interesting to hear about campaigns which have linked into other recreational activities.

I admitted that I hadn't seen that particular campaign (which was specific to Northamptonshire) and was shocked to hear the message it promoted. With a little bit of internet searching I've found a photo of one of the posters on the back of a bus:

"Don't get beaten during the rugby world cup". Whilst I think raising awareness of domestic violence is a great idea, I find this particular campaign to be problematic.

Firstly "Don't get beaten" implies that it's inevitable that the perpetrator will be violent; that this is somehow a threat waiting out there for potential victims; and that somehow a victim is letting themselves get beaten. Secondly the image, to me, shows a passive woman who unfortunately didnt do enough to avoid getting beaten. This, I think, is an extremely poor campaign that does nothing to challenge the stereotypes and pressures that are the underlying cause of domestic violence in the UK.

The campaign's local media coverage cites the fact that "During the Football World Cup incidents of reported domestic violence increased by 30 per cent". Other media sources quote similar statistics, and research by Dr Catherine Palmer at Durham University has found links between sporting events (with the Football World Cup being the most highlighted example) and rises in violence against women. The research indicates that male athletes (particularly in contact and team sports), when compared to other men, are more likely to commit acts of violence against women. Competitve tensions and alcohol consumption could lead to an increase in intimate partner violence from spectators at larger sporting events.

In light of this the End Violence Against Women Coalition has set out recommendations for addressing this rise during the Olympics in London this summer - I sincerely hope this challenges the underlying causes of domestic violence (and other forms of violence against women) in a more effective way than that of the Northamptonshire campaign last autumn. From the research by Dr Catherine Palmer trafficking, prostitution, sexual exploitation and sexual assault may be more affected by this type of event - although there still could be a rise in domestic violence incidents.

However, an event like the Olympics has a lot of potential for reducing the underlying causes of domestic violence in the long run. This is because violence against women and so much domestic violence is underpinned by the stereotypes created about what it means to be a man and what it means to be a woman.

I believe the men's football world cup and men's rugby world cup are and have been seen as flashpoints for domestic violence because they reinforce the epitome of these sterotypes. They are all about male athletes idolised as successful through agression and physical exersion whilst any consideration of women is the wives and girlfriends only discussed for how they look and other sexual attributes. There has been a lot of good work done with these two sports in particular - mostly latching onto the idea of a male athlete as the height of masculinity and using famous individuals to say that these real men don't commit violence against women. The White Ribbon Campaign have some good examples of working with sports clubs to get men involved in ending domestic violence.

In contrast, the olympics involves both male and female athletes. It's yet to be seen whether they will receive equal coverage but I think some of Britains best medal hopes are women. This gives a great opportunity for challenging the stereotypes underpinning violence against women. Women, for once, may be celebrated widely for their sporting success - something which the England women's football and rugby union teams rarely see in wide circulation media despite their regular achievements. This celebration of women beyond how they look when watching their husbands do sport could create dozens, if not hundreds, of positive role models for girls and young women as well as doing a little bit to challenge the perceptions of female peers amongst boys and young men.

This sort of effect probably won't be felt overnight, but I think the Olympics can prove an invaluable step to creating women who know they deserve respect ,and men who know they don't need to be violent to assert their masculinity.