Elgin's Long Red Line spotlights violence against women on Valentine's Day

It might seem counterintuitive to talk about violence against women on Valentine's Day, but that's exactly when people should hear that everyone needs to stand together to end rape and sexual assault.

That's the thought behind The Long Red Line event Sunday in Elgin, now in its fourth year and part of the One Billion Rising worldwide movement.

The main message is, "Love doesn't have to hurt," said Carolyn Clark, sexual assault program coordinator for the Community Crisis Center in Elgin, among the organizers.

"What we're doing is to bring more attention to violence in a different kind of way, not the traditional way," she said. "People can just stop by and just be a part of it."

The Long Red Line will be held at the Centre of Elgin, rather than at Gail Borden Public Library as in years past, a change mostly due to logistics, Clark said. There will several speakers, including survivors of rape and domestic violence. Participants are asked to bring a red cloth or scarf as a symbol of solidarity and support.

Hearing first hand from survivors is extremely powerful, especially for fellow survivors, said Rabbi Margaret Frisch Klein of Congregation Kneseth Israel. Klein joined the event as a spectator first, then as a participant and volunteer.

"I was amazed by the courage of the people who have been touched by this crime to speak so publicly about their own private trauma," she said.

And for those who wonder how much it can help to show up at an event like this, it does make a difference, Klein said, because it raises awareness about something that's still not talked about enough.

"People who go through these experiences feel a tremendous sense of shame, and this makes it a little less lonely," she said. "Until it is talked about we are not really going to see a reduction in the number of rapes. In the meantime, until we make it OK to talk about it, people feel alone. And people feel like it's OK to do this to women. Or for that matter, men."

The Long Red Line event will be held from 2 to to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 14, in the Heritage Ballroom of The Centre of Elgin, 100 Symphony Way, Elgin.