Ms Batty, who has used her high public profile following her son’s death to highlight domestic violence against women, received a letter on Tuesday inferring that her separation from her mentally ill husband was her fault and that she was partly responsible for the tragedy.
“What the writer is basically saying is, ‘What did you do to him? I’d like to hear his side,” Ms Batty told a Melbourne newspaper.
“What did you do to cause it? But you can never do anything to cause family violence, because it’s never acceptable, but that very prominent attitude is exactly what we’re facing in the community. It is never OK, no matter what. It does not matter what kind of mother or partner or person anyone is.”
Luke Batty was killed by his father Greg Anderson in front of horrified onlookers after a cricket training session at an oval in the small town of Tyabb, south-east of Melbourne, on February 12. Anderson was shot by police at the scene and later died in hospital.
Instead of railing against the writer, Ms Batty insists such people should be listened to. “These people have these really extreme views of hatred against women,” she says. “If these people are shot down and ridiculed, their views stay underground. We need to understand why there is so much hatred and anger, and where does that come from?”
