It’s time to take back the night on Sept. 19 starting at 6 p.m. at the Sarnia Library Theatre.
Take Back the Night, put on by the The Centre (formerly the Sexual Assault Survivors' Centre Sarnia Lambton), is part of the oldest worldwide movement that takes a stand against sexual and intimate partner violence.
“Sexual violence is under-reported and sometimes under-recognized, but we do know from the reports one in three women will experience sexual harm in their lifetime. One in six men, two in three trans folk, and anyone in the 2SLGBTQI+ community are more likely to experience sexual violence,” says The Centre's public education coordinator Trish Vanoosterom. This year’s theme is 'Expressive Arts for Healing: Journey to Wellness,' and will feature a special presentation by author Maddisyn Fisher about healing through expressive arts.
“We know her through work and she did a fundraiser for us, it was a poetry night, and in that expressed her passion for our agency, and through that we found she had written a book,” says Vanoosterom. “It was really really well written…it seemed to really fit. Her passion is there and that’s where that came from.”
Attendees will also experience the magic of sound healing with Jackie Davies, and an experience with the band A Mighty Fine Mess (AM/FM).
“They are not performing, they have a song about human trafficking sort of, and with that we are going to do an audio with the lyrics up on the screen and they are going to speak to how the song was written and why,” says Vanoosterom.
Around 7:10 p.m. the group will leave the Library Theatre and do a walk down Christina Street.
“We don’t walk far, it's pretty accessible. We go up Christina Street just a couple of blocks and down the other side. We have signs we hand out for people to carry and some chants,” says Vanoosterom.
Vanoosterom says the event is open to everyone and is family-friendly. She hopes to get somewhere between 50 and 75 people. But if you are unable to attend there are still ways you can support the movement.
“I think a big thing would be sharing on socials, having conversations with people in your life about sexual violence, and intimate partner violence and human trafficking,” says Vanoosterom.
As for the event she hopes people take away, “awareness that it is a problem that is happening in our community. And highlighting the needs of the survivors as well as what the community has to offer anyone who might be going through this or might be feeling alone.”