Tuesday, 15 October 2019

 Ms STITT (Western Metropolitan) (13:42): Recently I had the opportunity, together with a number of my parliamentary colleagues, to attend a performance of women prisoners at the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre in Melbourne’s west. Somebody’s Daughter Theatre Company is a company of artists with a mission to work with those who are the most marginalised in the community to empower them to improve their lives. The company has been operating since 1980 and currently works with women prisoners at both the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre and Tarrengower Prison. The program aims to use the arts to break the negative cycle of abuse and poverty for women in prison and post release by providing pathways back into formal education, training, employment and community as well as by building self-esteem and motivating change behaviour.

The art exhibition displayed approximately 55 works of art produced by 12 artists from the women at the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre and Tarrengower Prison and post-release program participants. To the courageous women at Dame Phyllis Frost Centre involved in the production of Miss, It Appears We’ve Hit Some Turbulence, I say thank you. The performance was funny, moving, confronting and uplifting in equal measure, and it was an absolute privilege to be there.