Hundreds of people will be downtown Barrie Thursday night as Take Back the Night aims at ending sexual assault and gender-based violence. The event will be at Barrie City Hall on behalf of Athena’s Counselling and Advocacy Centre and Huronia Transition Homes. Kelly Redmond, supervisor at Athena’s Counselling said the event brings together the community. “We show solidarity and resistance and a shared vision for a community free from violence,” said Redmond. The annual walk aims to raise awareness and elevate the voice of those who have not spoken up about the violence they have faced. “This is a problem that people don’t talk about, they don’t share it with friends and we just want everyone to know that we, society in general, is against sexual violence,” said Redmond. Haily MacDonald, executive director at Huronia Transition Homes (HTH) said the event is an important for women who might not feel safe with everyday activities. “So many women and gender diverse folks do not feel safe doing things that most people take for granted, particularly men, such as walking through the streets in the evenings, maybe going to get groceries,” she said. “For myself, when I walk my dog at night, it’s not something that leaves me feeling safe,” said MacDonald. Hundreds of people will walk the streets in downtown Barrie, a place where many young people go to during the weekend. “That’s where so much of the nightlife happens in Barrie, we’ve got a lot of the bars,” said MacDonald. “We know that women in their early 20s are the at the highest risk of experiencing sexual violence, so taking up space where we’re in such close proximity to where so many of those things could happen is critical.” The event is led by sexual violence survivors. “When we hold those spaces together, we get to really disrupt that norm and we get to create a space where we are meeting people with empathy and we are meeting people with compassion,” said Macdonald. Athenas serves women and gender diverse people over the age of 16 who have experienced sexual violence or intimate partner violence. Last year the centre answered more than 1600 phone calls.
