Kilkenny Gardaí preparing to turn city purple this Friday

Kilkenny City will be full of colour this Friday (May 30) to mark National Go Purple Day. A Garda-led initiative, Go Purple Day aims to raise awareness of domestic violence and abuse and to highlight the local supports available to victims and survivors.

Participants are encouraged to wear, bake or dye purple to show their support, with some of the city’s iconic landmarks set to illuminated in purple.

Go Purple Day was first introduced by Garda Stacey Looby as an initiative to help strengthen community partnerships between domestic abuse support services and An Garda Siochana. It was further developed through the Kilkenny Domestic Abuse Action Network (KDAAN).

Members of KDAAN include Amber Women’s Refuge, Tusla, Kilkenny Children and Young People’s Services Committee (CYPSC), An Gardaí and Kilkenny District Court.

Market Cross Shopping Centre will be hosting a special cycleathon on the day between 11am and 3am. Led by local Gardaí, the aim is for participants to collectively cycle over 150km on stationary bikes, the equivalent of cycling the circumference of the county.

There will be a collection for Amber Women’s Refuge on the day, as well as a table for creating and weaving purple stars for Amber’s One Million Stars Ireland project.

This campaign is an award-winning, inclusive, community arts project connecting communities across Ireland in solidarity against domestic, sexual and gender-based violence (DSGBV). Each eight-point star represents light, hope and solidarity against DSGBV, and promotes the project’s eight points of healthy love within relationships.