FORT SMITH, Ark. — For the last several years, a few hundred people have gathered on the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith's (UAFS) campus on Valentine's Day to bring awareness to domestic violence and sexual assault.
That won't happen on Feb. 14 this year, but that doesn't mean rising in the River Valley won't happen. Instead, the rally has gotten bigger and better.
One out of every three girls and one out of every seven boys will be sexually abused before they turn 18. One of every five women will be raped or sexually assaulted in their lifetime. The United Way of Fort Smith has been hosting a rally to bring awareness to this issue since 2017. But, this year, it will be known as the Raise Your Voice Rally.
Several local agencies plan to team up for this year's event set for April 2.
"We've asked Monarch 61 to be a part of this, as well as the Hamilton Center that deals with children that are going through child abuse," Shea Foldvary, United Way's executive director, said. "So we really wanted to open this up even more, and again, continue that awareness."
The event will also include the Crisis Intervention Center in Fort Smith as the lead agency. The center's executive director Penni Burns said it's a perfect fit for her agency.
"Because we are the sexual assault service center for adults in this area, we are also the medical forensic lab. So if someone needs a forensic kit done, it is where they come in our same nurses do the evidence collection for them," Burns said.
Monarch 61 in Van Buren is relatively new to this area. It's a hub for any woman to heal through various means including art classes. Executive director Nicole Walton said this event is one everyone needs to attend.
"My hope for the event is that people walk away and want to be an advocate for those in our community that either have experienced sexual violence or maybe are at risk for sexual violence, that they better understand that this is an issue that we can no longer keep quiet," Walton said.
Lorie Burnett is the executive director at the Hamilton Center. Since 2009, the center has specialized in handling child abuse cases. She said she wanted to make it clear that sexual assault doesn't only impact adults.
"It also affects children, and there are resources for those children. But as far as what we really want to make sure people understand is that if they see something, they need to say something because children often have a difficult time speaking for themselves. So we have to speak for them, and not be afraid to do it," Burnett said.
More information about the event will be released in the coming weeks.
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