HOST INTRO: With New York City hosting a wide range of shelters and havens for victims of domestic abuse, Omega Phi Beta Sorority Inc. hosted its 8th annual Ray of Hope walk protesting violence against women at Riverside Park in NYC. Alongside the sisters in NYC, sisters in Atlanta, Chicago, and LA all protested domestic violence in their respective cities. Here’s Konrad Szybisty with the story.
AMBI: *Crowd responding say her name to women killed in recent year* “Dana martin” “Say her name”, “Daranisha Duncan boyd” “Say her name”, “Jazeline ware” “Say her name”, “Ashanti Carmen” “Say her name”
TRACK: With the cold air breezing from the Hudson, men and women from all over New York huddled together and marched to combat violence with non-violence. Music, cheers, stories of past abuse, and even some warmup yoga were all a part of the Ray of Hope walk in NYC. A new member of the sorority and first-time protestor Tiara McNeil held high hopes for her first walk.
ACT: “My expectations was having a large crowd and mobilizing the community to come together to stand for what’s right, basically raising awareness”
TRACK: The Ray of Hope walkers all shared a common goal; to get together. Hugs, smiles, and laughter were abundant before, during, and after the walk; something Tiara was very satisfied to see.
ACT: “That’s actually something that brought my attention immediately, before I even became a sister. I’ve seen the sisterly bonding and how you don’t even have to be a sister to build a relationship with those and I have sisters that want to push me forward to be a better version of myself before I even became a sister”
AMBI: “There are movies waiting to be seen. There are people waiting to hear each and every one of our voices, so today we are walking again for those who have came before us, for each and every one of us today and for those who have yet to tell their stories”
TRACK: Protesting an issue is all well and good, but people aren’t satisfied just saying they dislike an issue, they want the problems to stop. In the 2018 annual report done by the New York City Domestic violence fatality review committee, from 2010-2017 women accounted for 76% of victims in intimate partner homicides. Tiara’s belief on preventing domestic violence is teaching children at a young age the taboo of assaulting your partner.
ACT: “So having someone speak in schools and starting out from young and how this is something we should fight for, this is you know something that is inappropriate you know? Stand up for yourself, I think it really hits home to start with the youth because quite frankly youth, that’s whats gonna change our generation.”
TRACK: For Baruch college, this is Konrad Szybisty signing off.