Bunyip walks together for Eurydice Dixon
Sam Millis was overwhelmed by the amazing community response to her family’s decision to walk their own path in Bunyip last Monday night when they were unable to attending the Reclaim the Park vigil for Eurydice Dixon.
Like so many in the community, Sam said she was overcome by the tragic alleged rape and murder of Eurydice in Princes Park, Carlton. And like many families, she said they began their own discussions about neighbourhood safety, especially for women.
Sam said the idea for a Bunyip walk and vigil unfolded very quickly after she posted on social media her family’s intention to reclaim the streets of Bunyip.
“I was watching everything unfold in the media and I thought, I am not going to sit at home thinking about it.
“We are a community and we should be together.
“We should be able to walk safely in our community so we walked together for Eurydice.
“It is good to support each other through these tragedies. Lots of young men came and people were talking, it was about having the conversation that women don’t feel safe.
“It was about being supportive to each other but importantly having the conversation,” she said.
Sam has participated in past Reclaim the Night walks but, unable to attend last Monday’s Reclaim the Park vigil in Carlton, she set her own path.
About 80 people joined Sam’s family in their walk. There was a domino effect in the community of people wanting to stand united.
“We have such an amazing community. We walked our own path through Bunyip in her memory and to reclaim the night,” Sam said.
The walk began at the Bunyip netball courts, which Sam said was traditionally a place where women gathered. The walkers then did a lap of the Bunyip football oval walking over the train line, up to the top pub down the main street and past the park, back over the train crossing and returning to the oval.
As a social worker, Sam said she sees family violence and violence first hand and has a strong sense of social justice. But, as a mother of two daughters and a son, aged between seven and 12, Sam said she wants her girls to know they can walk alone or together in their neighbourhood without fear or intimidation.
Sam said the alleged abduction of an 11-yearold girl in Sydney had been another sad reminder.
She said her family had talked about the intimidation her girls had felt in walking past a group of boys at the recreation reserve and the way her son would behave in situations with other boys.
She said the recreation reserve was a popular area for lots of families and people gathering for different sports and parents let their children walk around freely.
Sam said it was so important to have the open conversations. “We want to give them independence and resilience…but we can’t just assume nothing will happen.”
The walk may become an annual event in Bunyip, but Sam said there were many positives, with some older people talking about meeting for regular walks or forming walking groups so they could support each and feel