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Edmonton's Take Back the Night rally shines light on violence against women

Edmonton's Take Back the Night rally shines light on violence against women

Armed with placards and passion, a small but dedicated group gathered in Sir Winston Churchill Square on Friday evening to take a stand against the violence women face each day, at work, on the streets and too often in their own homes.

The event, called Take Back the Night, is intended to raise awareness about gender-based violence.

Participants came together Friday for a rally and march through the downtown streets. They lit candles and carried signs.

"Since the 1970s, Take Back the Night has been a chance for women to come together and oppose sexual violence and all kinds of gender-based violence," said Merryn Edwards, spokesperson for the Edmonton International Women's Day Committee, the group that organized the local event.

Marches have been held in Edmonton since 1978, she said.

"We come together at night, bringing lights and candles to highlight the sexual violence that we are exposed to in the dark," Edwards said in a statement issued before the march. "As well as to illuminate the hidden reality of just how widespread sexual and gender-based violence really is."

Following the rally and the march, a workshop was held at the Stanley Milner Library.

The problem is particularly acute in Alberta, Edwards said, where a downturn in the economy has exacerbated the already high rates of violence against women.

"Here in Alberta there's been a lot of open misogyny against women in leadership," she said, referring to online threats and attacks against Premier Rachel Notley and other women in her cabinet. "We have some of the highest rates of violence against women in Alberta, and in the Western provinces in general.

"It's a problem for everyone" Edwards said. "What are we missing out [on], when so many women are exposed to violence and living in fear? Everybody is losing that light of our fullest potential."