50 signatures reached
To: City of Calgary
Take back 17th avenue for Take Back the Night
The undersigned women and men would like to engage you in supporting us to walk 17th Ave SW next year at our annual Take Back the Night in September 2015. In fact, we would love you to join us.
Why is this important?
Since 1981, annual marches have been hosted across Canada to bring awareness to violence against women and engage communities in being part of prevention efforts. Take Back the Night in Calgary and other major cities continues to be an important fiber in the fabric of violence prevention efforts.
While the purpose of the march is to enhance the visibility of violence as a social problem and also demonstrate the roles of women and men as partners to end violence, a critical aspect of this event is a collective presence in areas of the city where the prevention message can reach a greater number of Calgarians. Take Back the Night has its origins as an event that would include a walk down populated areas, which would entail hubs of nightlife activity where the message of awareness and preventative action can be best disseminated. It has come to our attention, and has been evident in the last couple of years of this event that the presence of women and men supporters on 17th Ave SW with a violence prevention message may not be welcomed. This apparent shift in support from our municipal leaders is of great concern to us, as we know that you also value efforts to reduce violence in our communities.
While the purpose of the march is to enhance the visibility of violence as a social problem and also demonstrate the roles of women and men as partners to end violence, a critical aspect of this event is a collective presence in areas of the city where the prevention message can reach a greater number of Calgarians. Take Back the Night has its origins as an event that would include a walk down populated areas, which would entail hubs of nightlife activity where the message of awareness and preventative action can be best disseminated. It has come to our attention, and has been evident in the last couple of years of this event that the presence of women and men supporters on 17th Ave SW with a violence prevention message may not be welcomed. This apparent shift in support from our municipal leaders is of great concern to us, as we know that you also value efforts to reduce violence in our communities.