^F a b u l o u sf a l lu n ea r r iv e s ! Fashions hottest season Is upon us at By Consignment Everyday we are receiving all the sharpest looks for fall 2002. Come & see us for current classic & comfy sty!es...you'll never shop retail again! Fill IS -1 SDonsor Official Media Sponsor CREM ATION,, bet the tacts, rind out about j | Glen Oaks Memorial Gardens 3164 9th Line, Oakville Call257-1100 the choices i t proindes. " - Editor: Wilma Blokhuis Phone: 905-845-3824 (ext. 250) Fax: 905-337-5567 e-mail: blokhufs@haltonsearch.com \ v t :i >m :s i ).\Y . S I 1 M 1 M l M l J(K)2 · P a ^ e Bl Barrie Erskine · Oakville Beaver This stop sign becam e a symbol to stop the violence d u rin g T h u rsd a y 's candlelight Take Back the N ight walk. Walk against violence Take Back the Night focuses on global issues By Wilma Blokhuis BEAVER FOCUS EDITOR ~W~ W e r sign was simple - hand drawn and printed using black magic M . J L marker on cardboard on a stick. It read: `Listen to the beat of our feet down the street.' This reference to women marching for their right to Take Back the Night and walk the streets without fear was made by 10year-old Hayley Stewart. "I made the sign so people out there who are bad would know we feel strong when we go out walking." Take Back the Night has become symbol ic of women's stand against abuse, sexual assault and violence. In recent years, men have joined the annual walk in Halton - men who view abuse, sexual assault and violence as not just women's issues but society's ills. "Take Back the Night symbolizes the protest of w idespread violence against women," said emcee Niki Pietsch of the Take Back the Night organizing committee. "This walk represents a woman's right to walk at night without the fear of violence and harassment. "Since the beginning, during the 1970s, the Take Back the Night event has invited women of all ages, creeds and communities to publicly reject and challenge the existence of violence in our society," Pietsch said. Maliha Chishti And, because violence exists in all soci eties, religions and cultures around the world, the organizing committee selected Spanning Cultures: A Global Vision o f Equality, as the theme for last Thursday's 12th annual walk. "Our plan is to recognize and honour the differences among women and amongst nations," said Pietsch, "to approach these with respect and the intent to learn, instead of with fear, prejudice, and the intent to pro tect ourselves. "In a year that has been marred with international mistrust and judgment, it is especially important for Take Back the Night to acknowledge cross-cultural inequality, violence and stereotyping. `Tonight we recognize violence in its many forms," Pietsch told 280-300 partici pants gathered at Coronation Park. "Sexism, racism, classism, homophobia - fear of dif ference breeds hatred and hatred breeds vio lence." Keynote speaker Maliha Chishti, a PhD candidate researching humanitarian aid and its impact on participatory democracy at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education through the University of Toronto, presented a global view of systemic and structural vio lence against women. For Chishti, former director of the Hague Appeal for Peace at the United Nations and a catalyst for the Security Council's Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, Take Back the Night represents an opportunity to speak out against "incessant forms of violence" found around the world. "Domestic violence, sexual violence, sexual harassment, racism, homophobia, poverty, lack of representation, weakened political voice, war, xenophobia - these and many more are the multiple forms of vio lence we, as women, are affected by," said Chishti. (S e e `V io le n c e ' p a g e B3) Barrie Erskine · Oakville Beaver Liz W atson holds a candle du rin g a m om ent's silence to rem em ber the victims of violence at C oronation P a rk at T h u rsd a y 's Take Back the N ight w alk . Shelby B arker has `No M eans No' painted on h er face before the walk begins. (ktZA N V O P E N IN G SATU RD AY SEPTEM BER 2 8 t h - 1 0 -5 " M a s o n ry & F ir e p la c e D e s ig n S p e c ia lis t s " Design & installation of gas and conventional fireplaces; - stone & brick facings - wood surrounds - cast stone mantels - built-in cabinetry Q u ality b r a n d n a m e s g as & e le c tric fire p la c e s a v a ila b le F u rs C lo t h C c 'IT S heeps$ MAJESTIC VERMONT G oppa All types of masonry work & restoration: r *7.- - chimneys - walkways - planters - stairs - patios - tuck pointing AM 740 LIVE BROADCAST FROM 10 AM TO 2 PM DROP BY & FILL IN A BALLOT TO WIN A FREE SET OF GAS LOGS FROM V IS IT T H E S P E C I A L I S T S T O S E E T H E D IF F E R E N C E .. FINE OUTERWEAR SINCE 1815 406 S p eers R oad, O akville (across from Rona Lansing) 7 /· 2 0 0 u j.k e r h .o r e R o f id h a s fjfjM .n tr m n O a k x r l c la v 9 905- 337-2066