GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — October marks the start of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and to help remember those who have lost their lives to it, a vigil was held this evening on the Blue Bridge in Grand Rapids.
Community members gathered to hear the names of victims in Michigan, as well as hear a poem and a proclamation.
Organizers said it's an important topic that needs to be talked about in order to curb the statistics.
"Our community collectively coming together for this event, is a sobering reality of how deeply deeply impacted our community is by violence," said Tara Aday, an organizer of the vigil. "And so I think it's a testament to the individuals that came out here to show that, you know, violence cannot be silenced. And we as a community have a tremendous responsibility to do better. The proximity to the number of homicides that this community here in Grand Rapids has experienced is unacceptable."
According to theNational Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 36 percent of woman and 25 percent of men in Michigan experience violence, rape or stalking from an intimate partner.
