🧡 Broome Marks 10 Years of the Ochre Ribbon Campaign

🧡 Broome Marks 10 Years of the Ochre Ribbon Campaign

BROOME, FEB 2025 – On a warm Friday morning, hundreds of community members filled the streets of Broome to take part in the 10th Anniversary Ochre Ribbon March—a powerful demonstration marking a decade of standing against family and domestic violence in Aboriginal communities.

Organised by the Broome office of Aboriginal Family Legal Services (AFLS), the march began at the Broome Visitors Centre, wound through Chinatown, and concluded at Male Oval—where a community BBQ, informational stalls, and cultural performances followed. Read More

🌟 A Community United for Change

The march drew a diverse crowd: elders, families, service providers, legal workers, and local youth—all walking together under a shared message of hope: “Don’t silence the violence.” Participants held banners and signs addressing alarming domestic violence statistics throughout the Kimberley, a region recorded with the state’s highest rates in December 2023. Read More

AFLS employees and local groups, like MOSAC Youth Services, stepped up to speak at the event, calling on men to challenge violence and girls to stand strong. Their message: primary prevention starts with education and leadership from within the community. Read More

🎙️ Leadership Speaks Out

AFLS Community Engagement Worker Vicki Long, who helped organise the event, reminded attendees that awareness is a first step—but action must follow. “We just want people thinking and talking about it—don’t be silenced,” she said at AFLS’s broader Kununurra event, echoing the premise of the Broome march in supporting ongoing dialogue .

📊 The 10-Year Reflection

The march also reflected on the movement’s origins. Started in 2015, Ochre Ribbon Week honours both a tragic loss in Meekatharra and a young girl’s passing in 1999—events that sparked investigations into systemic failures and built a national awareness campaign led by AFLS.

“Family and domestic violence isn’t just a statistic—it’s a reality for so many of our women and children,” said AFLS CEO Corina Martin during the campaign launch. Read More

📢 Media & Public Reach

Though regional, the Broome march attracted coverage from ABC Kimberley, Broome Advertiser, and the National Indigenous Times, highlighting its importance in calling for community-led responses to violence. AFLS’s own social media posts shared lively photos of the event, reinforcing the message of solidarity.

💪 What’s Next

The march wasn’t just a commemoration—it was a call to sustain momentum:

• Community-led solutions like the Broome One Stop Domestic Violence Hub (set to open soon) are being championed locally broomead.com.au.

• AFLS continues pushing for holistic services, education, and culturally informed prevention strategies—just as the campaign’s founders intended.