World Without Rape (2022) | Joanna Bourke, Jess Hill, Sisonke Msimang, Saxon Mullins & Bronwyn Penrith

World Without Rape (2022) | Joanna Bourke, Jess Hill, Sisonke Msimang, Saxon Mullins & Bronwyn Penrith

Author: Festival of Dangerous Ideas March 6, 2023 Duration: 58:33

The last few years have seen courageous sexual assault survivors become heroines and heroes, conquering the forces that have silenced them for so long. While laws are changing and we continue to unravel the culture of shame that has protected perpetrators and punished survivors how can we evolve the conversation? Can we ever get to the heart of the matter, and think about a world without rape? Or are our efforts doomed to failure as we tinker at the edges of an eternal crime?

Please note this session contains themes that may be sensitive to some listeners including discussions of rape and sexual assault. 

Joanna Bourke is a historian, academic and Professor of History at Birkbeck, University of London, and a Fellow of the British Academy. 

Jess Hill is a Walkley-award winning investigative journalist who's been reporting on domestic abuse for several years.

Saxon Mullins is Director of Advocacy at Rape and Sexual Assault Research and Advocacy. In 2018 Saxon appeared on Four Corner's episode I am that girl where she gave up her anonymity to tell the story of her 2013 sexual assault and the subsequent criminal trials and appeals.

Bronwyn is a Wiradjuri woman who has worked all her life for equality and the recognition of First Nations people and their rights. 

Sisonke Msimang is an award-winning writer whose long-form writing on money, power and sex has appeared in the New York TimesForeign Affairs the Washington PostLapham's Quarterly and a range of other publications. 

 

 


For more than a decade, the Festival of Dangerous Ideas has curated a space where provocative thinking isn't just welcomed, it's the entire point. This podcast is a direct line to that stage, offering an archive of talks that deliberately unsettle comfortable opinions and interrogate the stubborn problems we often agree to ignore. Each episode captures a live conversation from Australia's original disruptive ideas festival, presenting arguments that can be exhilarating, uncomfortable, and vitally important. You’ll hear from a compelling roster of festival alumni-including leading experts, intellectual troublemakers, and visionary authors-who share perspectives that conventional discourse frequently sidelines. The discussions here aren't theoretical exercises; they grapple with the pressing and difficult issues shaping our society and culture right now. Tuning in means granting yourself access to a decade-long tradition of intellectual courage, where the core assumption is that some truths are only reached by first entertaining a dangerous idea. It’s a chance to listen as boundaries are pushed, not for shock value, but for clarity. The result is a consistently challenging and refreshing audio experience that complicates simple narratives and expands what feels possible to talk about.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Festival of Dangerous Ideas
Podcast Episodes
Claire G. Coleman (2022) | Words are Weapons [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:36
Stories define who we are, our history and they can be weaponised. Stories can erase an entire culture. History is nothing but a story. Noongar woman and author Claire G. Coleman invites you to consider that Australia ha…
Joanna Bourke (2022) | The Last Taboo [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:44
Our modern society is dependent on extraordinary levels of abuse and violence towards non-human animals. While we may love animals, we continue to interact with them in thoughtless, violent and cruel ways. We destroy the…
Frances Haugen (2022) | Unmasking Facebook [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:31
Former Facebook product manager, Frances Haugen did not set out to be a whistleblower, but when it became a question of saving lives, she knew it was time to tell the truth. On top of her concerns about mental health and…
Sisonke Msimang (2022) | Precious White Lives [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:16
Australia is professed to be the most successful multicultural society in the world. However, with our treatment of multicultural communities throughout the pandemic, a selective immigration progress and fraught ongoing…
Kevin Roose (2022) | Caught in a web [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:03
In a world where the internet saturates everything, where does the internet stop and our human selves begin? As we're nudged and pushed by an endless stream of alerts, notifications and recommendations, our attention and…
Ruth Ben-Ghiat (2022) | Return of the Strongman [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 34:28
From Russia and China to America, Turkey and beyond, illiberal leaders have used corruption, machismo, disinformation, propaganda and violence to stay in power and expand their influence for decades. With authoritarianis…