Decolonising Family Violence Legal Intervention Orders in African-Australian Communities

This book presents an intersectional, decolonial analysis of family violence intervention/prevention within the African-Australians Communities in Victoria, Australia. It explores the experiences of Family Violence Intervention Orders (FVIOs), assessing their effectiveness as interventions and safeguards against family violence in the African-Australian Communities. It investigates the influence of African-Australians cultural practices on the understanding and application of FVIOs, as well as participants’ proposed strategies for enhancing or aligning these legal interventions with existing African practices for preventing and managing family violence. The application of this intersectional approach plays a pivotal role in illuminating complexities of social history, culture, and identity that intersect with, and extend beyond, gender. This includes experiences of social conflict, migration, exclusion, and hardship. These factors complicated their experiences of family violence and added layers of intricacy when navigating the Australian legal system to seek legal protection through family violence intervention orders. The book documents these complexities in intersecting experiences of family violence, the cultural specificities of the Australian legal system’s interventions in family matters, intervention orders, and the involvement of various services. It shows how the implementation of the FVIOs with little consideration for social and cultural context diminishes their effectiveness as tools to combat family violence and enhance safety within the African-Australian communities. This book speaks to family violence scholars and practitioners and to those interested in multicultural and migration studies and intersectional and decolonial methods more broadly.

Akuch Anyieth

Akuch Kuol Anyieth is a crime, justice, and legal scholar. Dr Anyieth brings over a decade of experience in various facets of social and criminal justice, academia, policy, and advocacy. Among her qualifications, Dr Anyieth holds a Bachelor of Legal Studies from La Trobe University, a Master of Justice and Criminology from RMIT University, a second Master’s degree in family violence research, a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Law and Society from La Trobe University, a qualified Trauma-Informed Coach, and completed yearlong governance and political training at The University of Melbourne, Victoria. Her PhD thesis title Decolonising Family Violence Intervention Orders in the South Sudanese-Australian Community in Victoria was awarded The Nancy Millis Medal. Dr Anyieth has collaborated with numerous communities in Australia, as well as government and non-governmental agencies. She has authored peer-reviewed academic journal articles and books covering topics such as violence, family violence, masculinity, law and order, trauma, and social reforms. She has taught undergraduate and postgraduate students’ various humanities and criminal justice subjects and is open to PhD, Masters, and Honours students’ supervision.

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