In honor of domestic/intimate partner violence month, Soldiers Walking With Jesus Christ (SWWJC) and the Kappa Tau Zeta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta of Greenville will be hosting a silent march for all lives lost to domestic/intimate partner violence.
The event will start at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Greenville Mall, 1651 Mississippi 1.
The theme of the event is Zetas wear Purple “Meet us at the M.A.L.L.” (Marching For All Lives Lost to Domestic/Intimate Partner Violence).
Dr. Latricia Thomas, Greenville native and CFO of SWWJC, said the purpose of this event is to bring awareness to the epidemic of Domestic/Intimate Partner Violence, which crosses all racial and socioeconomic groups.
“As well as, to not forget those who lost their lives to this epidemic and support those in the struggle and those who have survived,” Thomas said.
This will be the first march of its kind to take place in Greenville. However, there have been several throughout the world, such as the first Latino DV Bride’s March in 2001 in New York City in memory of Gladys Ricart.
Thomas said there will be more events like this in the future.
“It is my passion to bring awareness to domestic/intimate partner violence in October because we know to wear pink for breast cancer,” Thomas said. “However, we need to equally wear purple because we do not have a cure for domestic violence. The best defense against it is self love. That’s why we chose the verbiage, ‘What About You? Simply loving you?’”
The event is free and open to the public.
Although there will be no refreshments, they will have Purple & White T-shirts for sale for $15 with #WhatAboutYou #SimplyLovingYou (English) #Que tal tu! #Simplemente.Amate (Spanish).
A portion of the funds will be donated to Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc Kappa Tau Zeta Chapter of Greenville, MS Scholarship Fund.
Thomas said she hopes people will learn three key things about this event.
“Statistics of lives lost in the Mississippi Delta and globally (women and children), proper protocol for reporting domestic violence and local and national programs available for those seeking help,” Thomas said.
For more information, Thomas can be reached at 901-907-2003 or by emailing swwjc34@gmail.com.
