SafeHouse partners with UM to host White Ribbon event

Published 1:47 pm Thursday, April 15, 2010

SafeHouse and the University of Montevallo are banding together to teach men about domestic violence with a White Ribbon event on the UM campus next week.

April is Sexual Assault Awareness month, and the White Ribbon event will be held April 19-20 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. each day in the UM cafeteria.

During the event, workers will ask men to sign a pledge stating they will not commit, condone or remain silent about violence against women.

SafeHouse Community Educator Valencia Albright said it’s important for men to be aware of violence, even if they don’t participate in abuse.

“We want to make more men aware of the situation, and hopefully we can encourage awareness on our college campuses,” Albright said.

She said the event would benefit not just UM but also the entire county.

“It’s going to mean a lot, not only to Montevallo, but to the community as a whole,” she said. “We want to raise awareness of the event and what’s going on in our community and in our schools so hopefully we won’t have to talk about further incidents down the line.”