Jess Hill

in 2016.

And so as Jess Hill has quite rightfully pointed out, yes, state and federal governments committed to this first plan when it came out, but they didn't actually implement many of its recommendations or commit the necessary substantial funding.

And so instead, the plan was sort of handed around, Jess describes it as like a hot potato.

And so, yes, we had that sort of first national plan, but we're now actually on to the second national plan nearly halfway through it.

But it's actually that public conversation around the use of control, you know, that is kind of the bedrock of domestic and family violence, like this kind of control and that idea of coercive control where you're actually...

I mean, Jess Hill, the, um, you know, journalist and writer on this, really talks about, like, coercive control is about, like, literally trying to take, take over somebody's way of being in the world.

Like it's a deliberate strategy to break that person down so that you can control them.

And that's actually been something that I think the, the sort of domestic violence response sector has struggled to help people to understand, that domestic violence is essentially, um, the use of power and control.

She came to Australia and I was asked to be one of 15 women to fly to Canberra and to meet her to talk about domestic violence.

So I was sitting there with the likes of Rosie Batty and Jess Hill and some incredible women who were just – their experiences, their stories were just phenomenal.

But she was actually really, really passionate, cursed about domestic violence and knew – knew a lot she knew a lot she actually really was passionate genuinely um and what it made me realize is that when women unite globally around this issue we could do some we could absolutely change the world you know when there's someone like camilla invested in this you know we're heading we're heading in the right direction i think

Yeah, and I think I got into it off the back of working in corrections as well.

So, really, things like Our Watch, just an...

Jess Hill's amazing.

See what you made me do.

There's people doing extraordinarily good stuff out there and we all need to be made aware of A, how we don't become a victim ourself and B, you know, what to do when you think someone you know might be.

But there have been so many good ones.

And then Jess Hill, I think, See What You Made Me Do.

Yeah, critically important book.

Yeah.

I mean, in a way, there is the playbook of the coercive control, which is very similar, but also it is so specifically geared and targeted to the individual circumstances of each relationship that it's very nuanced and it's important to kind of really get to know the dynamic of that relationship.

Yeah, it reminds me of, and I always, so you've probably read the book by Jess Hill, See What You Made Me Do.

Yes, it's such a seminal.

Yeah, great book.

So an abuser is never responsible for anything.

It's never their fault.

That's the title of Jess Hill's

book, See What You Made

Well, it's time now for Changing Australia and in her youth, Jess Hill tried to start a new magazine to provide an alternative to women's publications at the time.

She went on to become a tenacious journalist reporting from the Middle East and after returning to Australia, Jess was asked to write about domestic and family violence.

And that was life-changing.

Her work has helped to drive change and transform our understanding of coercive control and major flaws in our system.

as we mark Radio National's top Australian books campaign.

I'm delighted to be joined by Jess Hill.

Jess, welcome to Changing Australia.

G'day, Sally.