By Shannon McFarlin News Director
Paris, Tenn.–A large and somber crowd was on hand in downtown Paris Monday evening for the unveiling of The Clothesline Project which raises awareness of the horrors of domestic violence all over the country and right here at home.
Organized by Jane Etheridge of Phases to Freedom, the program included remarks from Judge Vicki Snyder and emotional testimonies from local victims of domestic abuse.
In front of the stage on the court square were empty chairs draped in white cloths with the names of local women who have perished due to domestic violence.
T-shirts with messages of despair and hope that were created by local victims were placed on clothes lines on the courthouse lawn. The clotheslines will be kept up for a week so that the public can see the messages.
Speakers emphasized that domestic violence does not just happen elsewhere. It happens here and happens to rich and poor, old and young. Speakers read statements addressing myths about domestic violence, including that abusers have temporarily ‘lost control’.
Judge Snyder said the victims who created the t-shirts “gave up their secrets and I wasn’t prepared for all that I saw. No one should suffer in silence.”
Henry County Mayor John Penn Ridgeway issued a proclamation honoring the victims and proclaiming October as Domestic Violence Awareness month.
Photo: County Mayor John Penn Ridgeway, District Attorney Neil Thompson, Assistant Paris Police Chief Ean Reed, Police Chief Ricky Watson and his wife Felicia listen as victims tell their stories. (Shannon McFarlin photo).