This blog post was written by Marianne Winters, Executive Director at Safe Passage and was originally posted on the Safe Passage Blog January 23rd, 2014.
This month we honor Yoko Kato and celebrate her 70th birthday. Yoko,
who serves on the Safe Passage board of directors, has worked tirelessly
on prevention and system reform since the murder 21 years ago of her
daughter and grandson. To say that Yoko is an inspiration is barely
adequate to express the full extent of her work and her impact. Yoko
began her work just a few days after the murders, when she asked a
police officer what she could do to make sure that this doesn't happen
to others. Since then, she has serves on boards of directors of
community organizations that address violence against women and
children, the Massachusetts Office for Victim Assistance, The District
Attorney's Domestic Violence Task Force and the Children's Advocacy
Center. She not only served on these boards, but constantly served as a
reminder of the real impact of domestic violence on families and
communities.
Kato has become an activist against domestic
violence, sharing her story to help others and to teach, inspire,
inform, and motivate all of us. Her work helped reform and reshape our
systems here and abroad, in Japan, her native country.
We encourage you to view this video of news coverage around the anniversary of the murder.
We hope that like us, you'll be motivated by Yoko's strength. Let it
motivate you to do something and Say Something. True prevention must be
informed by the real life experience of victims of domestic violence and
their families. To envision the changes that will end domestic
violence, we first need to remind ourselves of the painful realities of
the issue, and bravely confront the hard work that needs to be done.
Thank
you, Yoko, for your courage and strength. May your suffering and
strength keep us honest in our work and inspired to keep taking steps
toward a world that will one day be free of violence.
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