By Violet Li
Hampton Park Community Groups Network held a day to Walk Against Family Violence on 4 December.
The walk was part of the 16 Days of Activism Campaign, which runs from November 25 to December 10.
Community members, including those from the Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Hampton Park Baptist Church, Hampton Park Community House, and Hampton Park Uniting Place, walked around the block of the local shopping centre to raise awareness of the issue.
Hampton Park Uniting Place community support worker Sam Igoe said the day was about supporting everyone and promoting the message to stop all violence towards anybody and treat people with respect.
“We were carrying banners and posters, and we handed out pamphlet information about the special organisations that people can contact if they’re affected by this issue,” she said.
“It was just the first year of doing this walk, but we’re hoping that it will get bigger each year and raise more awareness.”
Ms Igoe said the network started the event because of the high number of people in the community affected by family violence.
“They’re too afraid to seek help or that people treat them differently,” she said.
“There’s a stigma attached to it. Everyone’s very secretive about it.”
