Some would like to conceal the stain of domestic violence in our valley, but looking the other way allows it to persist. We cannot tolerate this violence to continue to assault the most intimate of places—the home.
Beginning on Saturday, November 26, the Domestic Violence Center of Santa Clarita, the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station and the City will partner with the Zonta Club of Santa Clarita for a unique campaign aimed toward bringing awareness to these violent acts and the victims who have lost their lives in our community because of them.
The “Zonta Says NO to Domestic Violence” campaign will display seven red dresses around Santa Clarita to symbolize seven women who have lost their lives to domestic violence in Santa Clarita. The dresses will be displayed outdoors, animated by the wind and weather, as a symbol of bloodshed in the midst of our community.
Residents can see these dresses at several locations throughout the City including City Hall, Santa Clarita Valley Court House, Santa Clarita Valley Station, Valencia Library, Old Town Newhall Farmers Market, Veterans Historical Plaza, Aquatics Center, College of the Canyons, along Main Street and at various other local sites.
These bright red symbols are meant to remind us of the reality of domestic violence – it may seem like a private matter, but it is happening in our neighborhoods, to our fellow residents. During the first half of 2015, an unprecedented 11 homicides were committed in Santa Clarita, a shocking 600 percent increase in homicides, a majority in relation to domestic violence. This issue cannot be ignored. We must strive to be up-standers, and not bystanders.
Several Santa Clarita Valley agencies took a stand against the terrible loss experienced and together formed the DIVERT Task Force in 2015. The Domestic Intervention Violence Education Resource Team is comprised of representatives from the Sheriff’s department, the City, the District Attorney’s office, the Child and Family Center, the Domestic Violence Center, the Department of Children and Family Services, College of the Canyons, the EMERGE from Anger Program and the County of Los Angeles.
