On March 7, Fillmore Community Advocates Women’s Shelter, Inc. in Preston held an open house to honor the 21 Minnesotans who lost their lives to Domestic Violence in 2016. The Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women has been collecting information about Femicide in Minnesota for 28 years and was one of the first states in the nation to keep such records. Each year they publish the Femicide Report and, on March 7, read the names of each victim to bring awareness of the lethality of Domestic Violence. Each victim was someone’s child, parent, partner, friend and co-worker. If we are to end Domestic Violence, we need to acknowledge that it occurs, that people are injured, that lives are broken, that people die…and that it can be prevented. The Femicide Report gives us the information to start the discussion in our communities.
Fillmore Community Advocates Women’s Shelter, Inc. has created an “Empty Shoes” memorial at their office located at 212 Main St. SW, Preston, Minn. Each victim’s story is displayed next to a pair of empty shoes that represents the life taken from this world. The memorial follows a path throughout the office space. There was a strong and emotional response to the “Empty Shoes.”