Walk aims to spotlight domestic violence

TEXARKANA, Texas — A local organization hopes to unite the community and bring awareness to domestic violence this weekend.

Let it Out will host its first free Domestic Violence Awareness Walk on Saturday. Participants will gather at 10:30 a.m. at Texarkana College’s Tucker Street parking lot, with the walk starting at 11 a.m. The route will proceed from Texarkana College to Beverly Park Community Center.

Sonya Henry founded Let It Out in October 2023. She was inspired to create the organization and the walk after experiencing domestic violence herself. Her goal is to empower other women facing similar challenges and raise awareness about the warning signs.

The name of the organization was inspired by her frequent Facebook Live videos during the COVID-19 pandemic. In several of those videos, she said “I’m just going to let it out,” and the name stuck.

“Our community needs to work together to end the cycle of domestic violence, and we can do this by sticking together and speaking up when we see or hear it happening,” Henry said.

Following the walk, Henry will share her personal story of domestic violence and abuse. Attendees will also have the opportunity to share their experiences. The event will also feature a wide range of entertainment.

She chose Beverly Park as an endpoint to the walk because her personal experience with domestic violence happened within the Beverly community.

Henry was in a violent domestic relationship for three years, starting when she was 19 years old.

“I was getting tired of getting beat up. I had left probably about a year before I got attacked, so when I left, I was young and was tired of being talked down to and controlled. I just told myself enough is enough, and I wanted to start living my life,” she said.

Women between the ages of 18 and 24 are most commonly abused by an intimate partner, accord

ing to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s website.

One in three women and one in four men will experience domestic violence, according to the site. On a typical day, there are more than 20,000 phone calls placed to domestic violence hotlines nationwide.

“I hope after this event it will help the attendees communicate more openly about domestic violence and abuse, because it is often only spoken about behind closed doors.

“The same way we may speak about something like Breast Cancer Awareness, we also need to do the same for domestic violence because it seems like this is an issue that is kind of put on the back burner.”

Shayna Knoll, victim outreach advocate for Domestic Violence Prevention Inc. in Texarkana, emphasized the help and the wide range of services the organization offers. DVP is not affiliated with Let It Out or Saturday’s awareness walk.

“We provide emergency shelter to those in need. We offer help with filing protective orders, court accompaniment, counseling and several other services,” she said. “We also help victims of sexual assault and human trafficking.”

There are several types of violence — physical, verbal (including hate speech), psychological, sexual, and socio-economic — Knolls said.

Henry mentioned that there are some warning signs to look out for.

“If you start to see someone who’s starting to be controlling over every aspect of your life. The person may start having mood swings or even speaking to you crazy and talking down to you. …

“I feel good. Life is good for me, because now I get to give this information out and to be of help to someone else,” she said.

If you or someone you know needs help, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24/7 at 800-799-7233.