OAKLAND — Individuals from throughout the Bay Space who’ve survived or misplaced a cherished one to violent crime gathered at Lake Merritt Saturday for a therapeutic vigil, hosted by Californians for Security and Justice.
Survivors, like 15-year-old Anidja Spurell, shared their tales.
“Therapeutic however not healed, and I’ve to remind myself that is OK,” Spurell mentioned throughout a spoken phrase presentation.
Her aunt, who organized the occasion, invited her. She thought it might assist her if she shared her story.
“I have been by emotional and bodily abuse from my mom up to now,” Spurell mentioned.
She mentioned her mom was an alcoholic, and he or she grew up in concern. However now she’s lastly secure, residing along with her aunt, going to highschool, and specializing in entering into faculty.
Spurell began writing and sharing her poems to assist her course of her trauma.
“At first, it was only a option to get my emotions out that I could not inform different folks, however then it turned one thing that was actually pricey to me,” Spurell defined.
She mentioned it was particular sharing it in the course of the therapeutic vigil.
“It is good to know I am not alone,” Spurell mentioned. “Persons are going by the identical factor. We’re all therapeutic collectively.”
Her aunt, Latosha Spurell is the East Bay Chapter Coordinator for Californians for Security and Justice. She mentioned she determined to host the occasion in Oakland due to her reference to crime and town.
“I select Oakland as a result of it is private for me,” Latosha Spurell mentioned. “After I was 16, my mother was murdered from home violence right here on the streets of Oakland. After which after I obtained sufficiently old to have kids each of my youngsters’ fathers have been murdered right here on the streets of Oakland.”
She mentioned, along with serving to folks heal on a person degree, the vigil known as on metropolis and state leaders to do what they’ll to assist.
“Mainly extra trauma restoration facilities, extra funding for after-school packages,” Latosha Spurell mentioned about what she needs to see extra of all through the state. “Extra funding geared in direction of serving to people who’ve been by trauma have the ability to course of what they have been by and have the ability to take initiative to heal.”
As for Anidja Spurell, she has a message for anybody who would be the sufferer of a criminal offense or who has misplaced a cherished one.
“It does get higher. Finally, it does,” Anidja Spurell mentioned. “It’s possible you’ll not have that mindset proper now; it’s possible you’ll be going by lots of hardships proper now, however so long as you retain going, so long as you retain pushing by, give attention to what your fundamental aim is and it’ll get higher.”
Californians for Security and Justice are persevering with their work past this occasion. They mentioned all 12 months they’re preventing for felony justice reform and for survivors.
