It’s not everyday you see police walking down the street wearing high heels. But that’s exactly what some officers with the Blood Tribe Police Service did Tuesday morning, to help bring awareness to domestic violence against women.
“Every October is national awareness month for family violence against women,” Constable Catlin Chaisson, member of the Blood Tribe Police Service said. “As the province of Alberta, it’s the third highest in Canada for domestic violence with women being the victim.”
The second annual Walk in her Shoes event in Standoff, saw the community come together to help spread the word.
“It’s okay to talk to the police, it’s okay to talk to somebody,” Chaisson said. “Some victims are embarrassed and there’s options out there, front line officers are one of them.”
But Geraldine Young Pine, an outreach worker at the Kainai Women’s Wellness Lodge says isolation and a lack of housing force many women back into abusive situations.
“Around 80-90 per cent of women do go back to the abuser,” Young Pine said. “So we do educate them while they’re at the Lodge, with domestic violence, with life skills and we work closely with our elders and give them the knowledge that they have a choice.”
Bringing programs into the community and targeting the whole family is one initiative the organization is trying to accomplish, Young Pine adds.
“If kids are seeing domestic violence, they’re going to grow up thinking that it’s normal,” she said.
While there were a few stumbles along the way, many endured the challenge of high heels knowing they were supporting an important cause and helping bring the community one step closer to putting an end to domestic violence.