Vigil recognizes victims of domestic violence at Will County Take Back The Night

A vigil in Joliet on Thursday recognized 60 women and children who were killed in the past decade in Will County, including six victims this year whose lives tragically ended in violence.

The vigil was part of the annual Will County Take Back the Night event that was held at Hufford Junior High School, 1125 N Larkin Ave., Joliet.

As part of the vigil, volunteers wore the names of each victim around their necks and held a flashlight to those names as they gathered inside a darkened auditorium at the school.

This year’s victims were recognized. They were Maya Smith, 24, Samiya Shelton, 17, her sister, Sanai Daniels, 9, Zena Taher, 27, Taylor Guerra, 23, and Cynthia Pinnick, 58.

Amirrah Abou-Youssef, coordinator for the 12th Judicial Circuit Family Violence Coordinating Council, said the organizers of the event don’t want the names of the victims to be forgotten.

“This community wants justice for them and wants them to be remembered,” Abou-Youssef said.

Afterward, the attendees held a march across Larkin Avenue outside the school. Many of the marchers shouted, “Take back the night!”

Take Back the Night first appeared in 1976 in Europe in response to sexual assaults and murders against women, event organizers said. Five years later, the first event took place in the U.S.

The event brings together survivors, advocates and community leaders in a call for an end to violence against women.

The keynote speaker at the event was Nikki Merriman, 29, who was raised in Joliet and has become a published author and poet.

Merriman also advocates on behalf on sexual assault survivors like herself. Merriman spoke about the pain she suffered throughout her life after she was sexually assaulted and the difficulties she had with having normal romantic and sexual relationships.

Merriman encouraged parents to believe their children and support them in any way they need if they are sexually assaulted. She also encouraged survivors to speak up.

“No matter what the world tells you, it is not your fault, and you are never alone,” Merriman said.

Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow also was at the event to talk about what his office has been doing to fight domestic violence in the community.

Glasgow said one of the biggest hurdles for his office has been protecting women who’ve been abused while criminal cases against their abusers are pending in court.

Glasgow said he has been working with Volunteers of America to develop apartments for battered women and their children in Joliet. He said he is confident that Joliet Mayor Terry D’Arcy will be supportive of the project.

“This is groundbreaking for me,” Glasgow said. “The biggest problem that I’ve had is that I’ve just got no way to protect the victim during the pendency of their case. This will allow us to provide them with housing that is secure and safe.”