On Wednesday, senator Pauline Hanson claimed domestic and family violence is “a two-way street”, blamed the cost of living for perpetrators’ actions, and suggested women experiencing abuse should simply “not put up with it”.

These comments are not an aberration. They sit within a broader political project that has, for decades, attempted to build support on the basis of normalising prejudice, particularly against migrants, Muslim communities and communities of colour. That same platform can also risk lending credibility to dangerous myths about domestic and family violence.

Words matter. Particularly when they come from elected representatives. Misinformation about domestic and family violence does real harm because it reinforces myths that keep victim-survivors silent, isolated and unsafe.

Violence is gendered. One in four women have experienced violence by an intimate partner since the age of 15, compared with one in 14 men. One instance, committed by anyone, is too many, but when a woman in Australia is killed by someone she trusted........

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