{"id":856,"date":"2019-07-17T18:18:55","date_gmt":"2019-07-17T18:18:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wcsu.wpengine.com\/news-archives\/silent-witness-initiative\/"},"modified":"2019-07-17T18:18:55","modified_gmt":"2019-07-17T18:18:55","slug":"silent-witness-initiative","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.wcsu.edu\/news-archives\/silent-witness-initiative\/","title":{"rendered":"WCSU 2016 – Silent Witness Initiative"},"content":{"rendered":"
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DANBURY, CONN. <\/strong>\u2014 Western Connecticut State University<\/a> will team up with The Women\u2019s Center of Greater Danbury<\/a> in observance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month during October to host \u201cThe Silent Witness Initiative,\u201d an exhibit that pays tribute to domestic violence homicide victims.<\/p>\n

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The exhibit will be shown from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2016,<\/strong> in the Student Center on the university\u2019s Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury, and from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2016,<\/strong> in the Campus Center on the Westside campus, 43 Lake Ave. Extension. The exhibit will remain on view through the end of October, 2016, in the Haas Library on the university\u2019s Midtown campus. Admission will be free and the public is invited.<\/p>\n

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The Silent Witness Initiative<\/a> recognizes and honors the many men and women who have lost their lives to domestic and dating violence. The exhibit will share the stories of Connecticut residents who have been victims of these acts of violence, and will seek to encourage family support and community connections to help raise awareness and promote advocacy for change.<\/p>\n

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Ann Rodwell-Lawton<\/a>, program manager of education and outreach at The Women\u2019s Center, described the Silent Witness exhibit as \u201ca visual representation consisting of silhouettes of women and men murdered in acts of domestic violence.\u201d <\/p>\n

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\u201cThe goal of this exhibit is\u00a0to create\u00a0an engaging\u00a0display to grieve the losses of human life, create awareness of domestic violence, start conversations about healthy and unhealthy relationships, and rally community support for victims,\u201d Rodwell-Lawton said. \u201cStudents only need to take a few minutes to see the exhibit and read each victim\u2019s story, but the impact these stories will make on students will last much longer than those few minutes, and will hopefully start conversations between students about how we can prevent domestic and dating violence within the campus community.\u201d
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Since 2007, WCSU has collaborated with the Women\u2019s Center to provide domestic violence and sexual assault outreach services to the Western community. The center serves the needs of individuals, families and the community with prevention, crisis intervention, community education and support services related to domestic violence and sexual assault. Services include emergency shelter, counselling, advocacy and crisis intervention for victims of domestic and sexual violence in the northern Fairfield and southern Litchfield County areas. <\/p>\n

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For more information about the exhibit, send an email to havelockr@wcsu.edu<\/a>. <\/p>\n

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Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs.\u00a0Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York.\u00a0 Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics of New England\u2019s best small private universities.<\/em><\/p>\n

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