I HATE CATS CAMPAIGN

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2023), 23% of women (2.3 million) aged 18 and over have experienced violence by an intimate partner. It is 2023 and such violence against women in relationships is still heavily prevalent. This needs to stop!

Research uncovered that violence against women persists due to the patriarchal view of “dominance, gender, and power”, embedded within society. These controlling ideals about all women extend to romantic relationships. Consequently, women suffer as a direct result of these apparently not ‘outdated’ ideals.

To raise awareness and dissolve these views, my campaign “I Hate Cats” primarily targets men who hate cats (aged 18 – 30). This is because society heavily associates women with cats and men with dogs, binary opposites like gender. And the reason why society compares women to cats is because they both face the issue of oppression and sexist ideals (Morris, 2021).

Therefore, my visual strategy utilises cats as a metaphor for women. Drawing on this, I list the reasons why men hate cats and put the corresponding view on women underneath as a shadow. This highlights the similarity of the patriarchal view on cats and women.