Vigil Remembers Victims Of Domestic Violence

Weeks after a series of vigils for the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks, members of the Harvard community gathered last night for a candlelight vigil for the victims of another terror: domestic violence.

About 40 people came to the event, which was planned because President Bush declared October National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Eight Harvard organizations sponsored the event, and representatives from the Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence (ATFADV), Jane Doe, Inc. and the Massachusetts Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence attended.

“We need to take a moment to reflect on the victims of domestic violence and how they suffer,” said Rida Law, development coordinator of the Asian Task Force, just after candles had been lit.

Law said that nearly one-third of American women murdered each year are killed by their current or former partners, usually by their husbands. About one million women each year report being stalked. Law also stressed the plight of children witness to domestic violence in their homes, which can “spawn future legacies of violence in families across America.”

“We must increase awareness of domestic violence through educational programs,” Law said.

Shirley Fan, executive director of ATFADV, described her organization’s services and said the month should be devoted to remembering victims and grieving.

“We must share the joy for new lives victims have found for themselves and for their children,” she added. “It doesn’t matter what race you are. Let’s end domestic violence.”

The next speaker, Toni Troop, of Jane Doe, Inc., spoke out passionately against domestic violence.

“You forget what DVAM [Domestic Violence Awareness Month] means,” she said, and continued to define the acronym. In defining “domestic,” Troop explained that women are least safe in their own homes. She stressed that “domestic” refers to dorms and communities as well.

“Violence,” Troop said, means everything from hitting and physical violence to “not having control over economic decisions. Violence is beyond the physical,” she said.

To stop this violence, suggested Troop, we must “change cultures, jokes, and insinuations.”

“Awareness is not enough,” Troop said. She urged immediate action against domestic violence.

“I’m not satisfied with a month,” she said.

Troop expressed disappointment that America has “perpetuated a tremendous amount of violence around the world” during this month.

The next speaker was Yoko Kato, a prominent spokesperson against domestic violence. On Jan. 11, 1993, Kato’s 23-year-old daughter, Sherry Morton, and 18-month-old grandson Cedric were brutally murdered by her daughter’s partner.

Kato works both in the United States and in Japan and recently received the Reverend Chang Imm Tan Award for Personal Courage. Kato has lectured at colleges including Smith, Amherst, Clark and Harvard, and has established a Memorial Scholarship Fund in her daughter’s name. She has also worked with the Japanese government, which has now recognized domestic violence as a crime of society.

After recounting the moving story of her daughter and grandson’s murders, Kato said that victims of domestic violence “have a voice to tell their stories now, looking at us from heaven. We are their voices and bodies.”

“This is a daily and silent terror that we shouldn’t keep silent anymore,” said Karen Guo of Harvard Law School, the community service chair of APALSA.

Sophia Lai ’04, of the Asian American Association, said many Asian groups on campus had chosen to sponsor this event because there was a “disconnect” between the Asian-American community and organizations that address social problems.

“[Asian-Americans] don’t share a lot of issues with the government and social workers,” she said.

Lai attributed this silence about domestic violence to the traditionally patriarchal Confucian culture.

After the vigil ended, people remained to talk in small groups, moved by what had been said.

“I’m so glad that people came despite the wind and cold. It’s very encouraging,” said Koko Oyama of the Asian Task Force.