Airing the dirty laundry of domestic violence is the purpose of the Clothesline Project, now in its second year in Castlegar.
The project has been happening since the 1990s all across North America, Kyra Hoggan of the Castlegar & District Community Services Society (CDCSS) said.
“A group of women were in Massachusetts in the ‘90s and realized 50,000 men were killed during the Vietnam War,” she said. “And during that time frame they realized 53,000 women were killed during domestic abuse.”
The Clothesline Project has evolved over the years and now it is estimated there are 500 projects internationally.
The purpose of the project is to get people thinking and talking about domestic violence, Hoggan said.
On Tuesday, the clothesline will take shape in Spirit Square outside city hall with T-shirts painted by women’s groups, Kinnaird Elementary School students and Castlegar Primary School students.
“We have literally every single class participating,” Hoggan said of Castlegar Primary.
For those who have missed out on decorating a shirt, Hoggan said they’re going to try and have a table set up on site so people can decorate a shirt there and hang it up right away.
Speakers will include Mayor Lawrence Chernoff and Castlegar RCMP Cpl. Deb Postnikoff. An M&M Meats barbeque lunch will be cooked by city councillors Russ Hearne, Deb McIntosh and Kevin Chernoff, with help from fire Chief Gerry Rempel.
KBS Radio will be on location as well.
Hoggan said support from the Columbia Basin Trust, CDCSS, KBS and Selkirk College has been instrumental in making the day a success.
The Clothesline Project takes place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on April 19. For more information on the history of the project, please visit clotheslineproject.org.