After hearing about the death of Kaylin Diggs last month, Dartmouth resident Elaine Mattatall was heartbroken.
The 26-year-old Diggs had died after he was the victim of street violence in downtown Halifax.
His death hit Mattatall especially hard because she lost her son, James in the same way last December.
And now enough time has passed that Mattatall, along with her family and friends, are willing to join in on an event that she says will bring awareness to the senseless violence downtown.
The Stop the Violence March will be held in Digg's honour on Sept. 30.
At 3 p.m. there will be an opening prayer at Sullivan's Pond.
Participants will then march across the Angus L. Macdonald Bridge to Halifax for speeches and a barbecue and other events at the Halifax Commons.
There will be bouncy castles and games for children.
Mattatall said they are promoting this as a family event and hope to have people from all walks of life and ages attend.
"I know the devastation they are feeling as a family," said Mattatall. "What happened to them resonated with us, so we have decided to take part in this event as well."
Mattatall says perhaps people had the wrong impression that her son was involved in a brawl.
"This was not the circumstance.He was probably standing there with his hands in his pockets, as usual," she said. "Things happening downtown really have to be given a hard look."
Mattatall has had 50 T-shirts made with James' name and picture and will distribute the T-shirts to anyone who would like to wear one in the march.
"I am going to be in the parking lot at Lion's Beach next to Senobe Canoe Club at 2:30 p.m. that day to distribute the T-shirts to anyone who would like to wear one in the march."
She is also going to organize driving a few vehicles over to the finish point and leaving them there, so there will transportation back at the end
of the walk.
Stop the Violence will be the second event of its kind that weekend. The East Preston United Baptist Church is organizing an anti-violence walk and prayer vigil from 8:30 to 10 a.m. on Sept. 29.
"I think it is very brave of the Diggs family and the organizers to be doing this march so soon after Kaylin's death and now we want to support
their initiative," said Mattatall.
For more information go to www.jamesmattatall.ca
