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16
Support For University Professor Being Investigated For Controversial Domestic Violence Take
Will she or won’t she? Questions are swirling around whether a professor in Australia will get canned for her comments about domestic violence or not.
Dr. Fiona Girkin is an associate lecturer in Policing and Emergency Management at the University of Tasmania. Her job is to teach new Tasmania Police recruits about family and domestic violence.
Highlights
- A female professor at the University of Tasmania is under review after an interview with a known anti-feminist
- Fiona Girkin told Bettina Arndt that there were just as many women committing violence against men
- Depending on their personal identity politics, reactions from netizens have been mixed
Recently, she appeared in a video interview with controversial conservative media figure, Bettina Arndt. In the interview, Girkin talked about how, in listening to the officers she has worked with, there were just as many female offenders in domestic violence cases as there were male.
RELATED:
Tasmanian University Professor under fire for seeming to agree with erroneous domestic violence data
Image credits: Getty Images/Unsplash (Not the actual photo)
Image credits: Research Gate
“It’s not males that are the offenders, it’s equally both men and women and that’s something that’s certainly coming back from all levels of policing that they’re telling me,” she told Arndt in the interview.
Because of Arndt’s status as a contentious and outspoken advocate for men’s rights, the media and the public took notice when Girkin appeared on her show.
In the interview, Arndt asks Girkin if she teaches police about the “international research showing that in most violent homes, most males and females are violent and women often instigate violence? The data’s well and truly out there,” Arndt says.
To that, Girkin agrees, saying that what she’s hearing from experienced police officers is that “they’re seeing just as many women as they are men in domestic violence situations as the perpetrator.”
Girkin placed on “assessment” after interview with a known men’s advocate and provocateur
Image credits: Bettina Arndt
Image credits: UpGrad
Not long after the interview, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation did a story on Girkin’s statements, reporting that she supported Arndt’s erroneous data. According to the ABC, which quotes stats from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, last year there were more than 1,580 domestic violence offenders in Tasmania, with 81 per cent of those being male.
After university officials found out about Girkin’s interview with Arndt, they opened an investigation and ultimately put Girkin under “assessment” until further notice.
Image credits: Bettina Arndt
Regarding Girkin’s role with the Tasmania Police, the department put out a statement saying that “the opinions stated by Dr Girkin are not in line with the principles Tasmania Police supports in dealing with family violence,” and that she would not be teaching police recruits until the investigation with the university was complete.
“The stats don’t back you up”: Girkin gets pushback over use of incorrect data
Image credits: Bettina Arndt
In the following days, Girkin has been speaking out about the incident. During an interview on the Ben Fordum 2GB podcast, the host told Girkin that “Obviously, the statistics don’t back you up there. And the cops I talked to say, look, there are more women now than we used to see, but still 80%, 90% are men.”
To which she replied, “And they’re the stats. They’re the numbers. And I guess I can’t argue with those.” Girkin maintains that even though the majority of offenders are men, there is often more that lies behind the scenes that explains the full picture.
Image credits: Bettina Arndt
“I’m looking at human beings and who’s in danger and who’s not, rather than looking at it as a gender problem. Of course, in most circumstances, they’re going to find that if it’s a physical violence situation often it is the male, but I want them to go in and look at behaviour, not at gender, because I think that can bias how they view the situation,” Girkin said.
“Patriarchal foot soldiers”: comments have been mixed about Girkin’s interview
Image credits: ABC News (Australia)
Netizens’ comments have been mixed, depending on their personal identity politics. Some support the views of Arndt:
“About time this in justice against men is discussed openly, without public opinion villifying every person daring to raise the red flags. Thank you for sharing,” one person said.
“I knew a couple in a town where I worked and the wife was beating up on her husband. I applaud Fiona for pointing out that these matters need to be investigated,” another said.
“Men are often the silent victims. Many women have been perpetrators. Maybe not as common but it definitely happens more often than most people would like to think,” said a commentator.
Image credits: ABC News (Australia)
Meanwhile, other comments have been critical of Girkin and Arndt.
“There is a special place in hell for these women,” one person said.
Still another said: “Good grief! These type of women are scary – an uninformed academic with obviously very limited, sheltered and privileged life experience.”
“Patriarchal foot soldiers 😡”
Another person said: ”I am SHOCKED. A literal professional at a university with access to huge amounts of research which CLEARLY shows that males dominate as DV perpetrators. Absolutely abhorrent.”
Bettina Arndt flipped from relationship therapist to men’s advocate in the 1990s
Last week Bettina spoke to a Tasmanian academic who is teaching police the truth about domestic violence. Help us prevent the feminist mob from getting her fired.
Tasmanian DV truth teller under attack https://t.co/CwTwJHpE8Cpic.twitter.com/3DzrfWWi2T
— #MenToo (@TheRealMenToo) May 25, 2025
In a paradoxical turn, it’s interesting to note that Arndt wasn’t always such a strong advocate for men. Earlier in her career, she was a self-proclaimed feminist and adult intimacy therapist, one of the first in Australia. She rose to prominence in the 1970s as an editor for The Forum, an Australian magazine about intercourse.
Indeed, in her role as “leader” of the country’s adult intimacy revolution, she pushed for more discussion about women’s orientation, tolerance for different preference of partners, and at the time, praised the introduction of laws criminalizing intimacy violence within a marriage in South Australia.
Image credits: Bettina Arndt
But then, in the 1990s, something changed. She began embracing more socially conservative ideas about relationships and family, criticizing people who have children out of wedlock. In interviews, Arndt has said of her change of heart that she “spent her early career lobbying for women but turned to men when I realised how lousy they are about advocating for issues that affect their private lives.”
Now she is seen as a feminist instigator, authoring a book that she released in the heat of the global #MeToo movement entitled #MenToo. Her critics say the provocations and outrageous statements are just meant to get attention. “To Arndt’s frustration, the male revolution she advocated of political reaction against feminism had failed to emerge,” said a lecturer at Macquarie Law School who has studied Arndt.
In the UK, a man reported being abused at the hands of a woman for years, even exposing how she defecated on him
Image credits: Channel 5
Image credits: Channel 5
Last year, the world learned about the horrific abuse sustained by a male in Bubwith, East Yorkshire in England.
Richard Spencer was featured in a documentary from Channel 5 about his violent ex-partner, Sheree, which included several scenes of the abuse recorded on a nanny-cam. In the doc, Spencer described the appalling treatment he suffered, including one incident in which his ex-wife used his head as a toilet.
Image credits: Channel 5
“I was sitting on the bedroom floor because Sheree wouldn’t let me sit on the bed. She got up to go to the toilet, and I was facing where the bathroom was; the next minute, I just realized that she defecated on my head,” Spencer said in the documentary.
In 2023, a judge sentenced his ex-wife to four years in jail for her actions.
The interview sparked a flood of mixed reactions regarding the veracity of the professor’s statements
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What do you think ?
Rika 7 months ago
Stats don't mean much because, 1) Most men being ab*sed by a woman don't report it, and the ones who do often get ignored or shamed. 2) In general, men and women are violent in different ways. Men tend to use physical violence, a black eye or a broken arm is something people can see and they're likely to suspect DV. Women tend to use psychological violence, and it's a lot more difficult to see: if a man is depressed/s*icidal, it's unlikely that people's first thought will be that he might be a victim of ab*se from his wife.
XenoMurph 7 months ago
My exwife is 5'10", 178cm. Same height as me. She hit me several times. Pulled a knife on me once. The physical differences meant she was much weaker. She hit me, but didn't hurt me, physically. If I had retaliated, that wouldn't have been the case. In my opinion men should report it more often. And the women should be prosecuted. But the reality is that the repercussions are often not the same. I could have done real damage in a short time. (I've never hit anyone, especially my ex) Female violence against men might be as frequent, but the damage is often very different. But it should not be accepted or diminished in seriousness, it's still a*****t and horribly traumatising. Copied from my reply to another comment.
Load More Replies...
KatSaidWhat 7 months ago
That stupid poll option "I don't do hetero" - because DV is CLEARLY just for straight people.
Jason 7 months ago
Most men who are victims of abuse never tell anyone. So there isn't going to be an accurate number there. I've seen more women abuse men than men abusing women. I am not attacking either side here, just saying what I've seen.
The_Nicest_Misanthrope 7 months ago
Domestic abuse survivor here. While I don't agree at all that it happens as often to men as it does to women, people need to realise it DOES happen. Gender is no excuse.
David 7 months ago
we know domestic abuse in the UK on official numbers is a 60/40 with men being 40% and many studied think its closer to even. Just more women are physical and men are abused other, but yes, most likely the physical is higher because men are less likely to be beleived and report it. Men who have been abused when reporting it, are often not believed or the a****r claims he abused her, and the police automatically take their side. This merits more research, but lets remember this isnt a contest who gets abused more, this should focus on getting better numbers so we can address the issue better and help victims, regardless of gender
BrunoVI 7 months ago (edited)
Are women as prone to violence as men? I don't know. But physical superiority matters. In old movies, it's shocking to see men spank their wives; that's physical abuse! But are we shocked when a woman slaps a man across the face? What old-timey movie DIDN'T show a woman slap a man across the face? (The STRANGEST seeming trope of old movies is when a man slaps a woman across the face TO CALM HER DOWN???) Is any of this slapping OK? Of course not. But it does illustrate how comparing relative amounts of abuse almost impossible. What I feel reasonably sure of: Male-on-female abuse is a huge problem; Female-on-male abuse also happens; it's grossly under-reported; it's impossible to compare; regardless of the propensity the overall physical harm done by female-on-male violence is considerably less, but nonetheless, in specific instances, the physical harm of female-on-male can be extreme, especially when weapons are used; it's categorically unjust to think the man must've had in coming, or that "real men" would never be abused. Failure to list a consideration doesn't mean I wouldn't agree or find it very important.
FreeTheUnicorn 7 months ago
I don't think it matters what the split is. There should be more support for victims of any gender. The focus on women has been default because, although not true in all specific circumstances, in general, women are the party with less power, and less ability to leave. Financially and socially things are getting better for women, but there's still a power imbalance on the societal level. So with limited resources, the support will go to the people with the least resilience as a group who the majority still identify with. The other groups, though no less deserving will be an afterthought. In my city that means cis white women, and then men are no longer served at the shelter in order to make sure trans women can't access it. It won't be until as a society we start treating victims of the same crime the same regardless of other factors that realistically men and other groups will get support.
FreeTheUnicorn 7 months ago
JK Rowling shut down a women's shelter because they served trans women and then opened a new one that didn't. She's a billionaire and instead of just building a new shelter because beds have always been too fewz she wanted to make sure to punish the first charity, not aid in solving the problem.
Load More Replies...
Daniel Gómez 7 months ago
Such stüpid äss poll options! Also, both men and women commit acts of DV, HOWEVER, men do it a lot more, even when DV from women is nor reported. Perhaps it's a bit different in Australia, but I live in a country where special laws to protect women have had to be created because women here are kïlled literally for being women.
Rika 7 months ago
Stats don't mean much because, 1) Most men being ab*sed by a woman don't report it, and the ones who do often get ignored or shamed. 2) In general, men and women are violent in different ways. Men tend to use physical violence, a black eye or a broken arm is something people can see and they're likely to suspect DV. Women tend to use psychological violence, and it's a lot more difficult to see: if a man is depressed/s*icidal, it's unlikely that people's first thought will be that he might be a victim of ab*se from his wife.
XenoMurph 7 months ago
My exwife is 5'10", 178cm. Same height as me. She hit me several times. Pulled a knife on me once. The physical differences meant she was much weaker. She hit me, but didn't hurt me, physically. If I had retaliated, that wouldn't have been the case. In my opinion men should report it more often. And the women should be prosecuted. But the reality is that the repercussions are often not the same. I could have done real damage in a short time. (I've never hit anyone, especially my ex) Female violence against men might be as frequent, but the damage is often very different. But it should not be accepted or diminished in seriousness, it's still a*****t and horribly traumatising. Copied from my reply to another comment.
Load More Replies... KatSaidWhat 7 months ago
That stupid poll option "I don't do hetero" - because DV is CLEARLY just for straight people.
Jason 7 months ago
Most men who are victims of abuse never tell anyone. So there isn't going to be an accurate number there. I've seen more women abuse men than men abusing women. I am not attacking either side here, just saying what I've seen.
The_Nicest_Misanthrope 7 months ago
Domestic abuse survivor here. While I don't agree at all that it happens as often to men as it does to women, people need to realise it DOES happen. Gender is no excuse.
David 7 months ago
we know domestic abuse in the UK on official numbers is a 60/40 with men being 40% and many studied think its closer to even. Just more women are physical and men are abused other, but yes, most likely the physical is higher because men are less likely to be beleived and report it. Men who have been abused when reporting it, are often not believed or the a****r claims he abused her, and the police automatically take their side. This merits more research, but lets remember this isnt a contest who gets abused more, this should focus on getting better numbers so we can address the issue better and help victims, regardless of gender
BrunoVI 7 months ago (edited)
Are women as prone to violence as men? I don't know. But physical superiority matters. In old movies, it's shocking to see men spank their wives; that's physical abuse! But are we shocked when a woman slaps a man across the face? What old-timey movie DIDN'T show a woman slap a man across the face? (The STRANGEST seeming trope of old movies is when a man slaps a woman across the face TO CALM HER DOWN???) Is any of this slapping OK? Of course not. But it does illustrate how comparing relative amounts of abuse almost impossible. What I feel reasonably sure of: Male-on-female abuse is a huge problem; Female-on-male abuse also happens; it's grossly under-reported; it's impossible to compare; regardless of the propensity the overall physical harm done by female-on-male violence is considerably less, but nonetheless, in specific instances, the physical harm of female-on-male can be extreme, especially when weapons are used; it's categorically unjust to think the man must've had in coming, or that "real men" would never be abused. Failure to list a consideration doesn't mean I wouldn't agree or find it very important.
FreeTheUnicorn 7 months ago
I don't think it matters what the split is. There should be more support for victims of any gender. The focus on women has been default because, although not true in all specific circumstances, in general, women are the party with less power, and less ability to leave. Financially and socially things are getting better for women, but there's still a power imbalance on the societal level. So with limited resources, the support will go to the people with the least resilience as a group who the majority still identify with. The other groups, though no less deserving will be an afterthought. In my city that means cis white women, and then men are no longer served at the shelter in order to make sure trans women can't access it. It won't be until as a society we start treating victims of the same crime the same regardless of other factors that realistically men and other groups will get support.
FreeTheUnicorn 7 months ago
JK Rowling shut down a women's shelter because they served trans women and then opened a new one that didn't. She's a billionaire and instead of just building a new shelter because beds have always been too fewz she wanted to make sure to punish the first charity, not aid in solving the problem.
Load More Replies... Daniel Gómez 7 months ago
Such stüpid äss poll options! Also, both men and women commit acts of DV, HOWEVER, men do it a lot more, even when DV from women is nor reported. Perhaps it's a bit different in Australia, but I live in a country where special laws to protect women have had to be created because women here are kïlled literally for being women.
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