Now On Sale - Daughters of Durga

       Dowries, Gender Violence and Family in Australia

"A searing, often shocking study of family violence.” - Age

The Indian-born clinical psychiatrist, teacher and campaigner has become a one-woman army against the practice of dowry in Australia. The dowry system – in which the family of a girl or woman betrothed to be married will shower gifts upon the family of her intended husband – is illegal in India, but remains a widespread practice both there and in Australia. 

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O’Connor argues dowry abuse is fundamentally tied to family violence taking place in Indian-Australian communities. Her relentless lobbying led to dowry abuse being added to the Victorian criminal code as a form of family abuse in 2018. 

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Her new book, Daughters of Durga, draws on her research and clinical experience. It introduces readers to the complexities of family violence as experienced by South Asian migrant women in Australia, with a primary focus on Indian women.

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“Inspiring and deeply humane, this book is a revelation about patriarchy, love, abuse and power, and into how an ancient culture has within it the key to its future. O’Connor is a thrilling thinker - I could not put this book down.”

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- Jess Hill, Author of See What You Made Me Do

Purchase Book at Amazon or Melbourne University Press website