The YWCA's local Middle Rio Grande chapter will help organize several events around Albuquerque to commemorate a Week Without Violence, including the 2002 Take Back the Night rally Wednesday at UNM.
The events are part of the Young Women's Christian Association Week Without Violence campaign that emphasizes alternatives to family violence, violence linked to racism, sexism and bigotry and violence in the media.
Led by YWCA chapters in thousands of communities in the nation and in more than 40 countries, the Week Without Violence will celebrate its eighth annual international campaign to raise awareness about violence solutions.
The Wednesday rally is organized to raise awareness of violence and help provide steps to combat it.
"We hope that by providing activities on the UNM campus that we will be creating an opportunity for concerned citizens to voice their opposition to violence and learn about solutions and alternatives to all types of violence," said Summer Little, programs service coordinator at the UNM Women's Resource Center.
There is an event featuring informative booths scheduled Wednesday, featuring organizations involved in the prevention of violence, such as the Albuquerque Rape Crisis Center and Agora, a crisis center in the Albuquerque area. The Wednesday event is designed to promote awareness of violence against women and honor whistle blowers against sexual harassment in the workplace.
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"We will be providing quilting squares for anyone who wants to voice their opinion on violence or share a story about how violence has affected their lives, that will eventually be made into a larger blanket symbolizing our efforts to curb violence," Little said.
There are also several television programs being produced through KNME addressing the elimination of racism and hate crimes. The Erase the Hate Forum 2002 will be hosted by Conroy Chino, and is being produced to shed light on possible solutions to racism, while also addressing issues such as domestic and physical violence against women.
"It is vitally important to bring attention to what can be done to eliminate violence," said Colleen Kenne, KNME service manager and producer of the program. "The forum and the panel of experts we have scheduled to appear will provide important information on specific steps that can be taken to curb all types of violence that we face."
The YWCA is a leader in violence prevention, offering programs and services to more than 700,000 of the nation's women and children each year.
"We recognize our responsibility to the citizens of Albuquerque and do our best to provide services and information to stop violence and educate people on alternatives to it," said Elizabeth Armijo of the Middle Rio Grande chapter of the YWCA.
The Middle Rio Grande is hosting several events throughout the week, including this past Sunday, which was recognized as a day of remembrance for female victims who have lost their lives from domestic violence.
"It is a poignant reminder of the reality of domestic violence and the extremes it can come to when it goes unnoticed or unreported," Armijo said.
