SAGINAW TOWNSHIP -- Break the silence and be a part of the solution. That was the message Thursday night at Underground Railroad Inc.’s annual domestic violence prayer vigil.
In observance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the organization displayed works of art – including decorated t-shirts on a clothesline – made by domestic violence survivors. Thursday’s event also honored victims of homicide. Organizers said the t-shirts, poems and songs were meant to empower other victims and survivors and educate people on how to stop the epidemic of domestic violence. In April 2010, Forbes magazine named Saginaw as one of the most unsafe cities for women. Nationwide, domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women.
“We want young people, we want men, we want women to know what healthy relationship looks like,” said Underground Railroad’s community development manager, Lisa Hall, who added the event’s goal is to curb domestic violence through education.
Underground Railroad serves more than 4,000 women and children in the Saginaw area every year. You can learn more about the organization at www.undergroundrailroadinc.org.
To report domestic violence, call Underground Railroad’s crisis hotline at 989-755-0411 or toll free at 888-399-8385.
You can also call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or report domestic violence online at www.thehotline.org.