Hillcroft Motorists Honk to Support Daya’s One Voice 2014 to End Domestic Violence
Outreach Liaison Sam Merchant (center) presents a certificate of appreciation from U.S. Congressman Al Green to Daya President Jyoti Kulkarni and Daya staff, board members, volunteers and HPD officers.
By Pramod Kulkarni
HOUSTON: On Saturday, October 25 afternoon, the Hillcroft district turned into an Indian street scene with cars honking in support of the community gathering organized by Daya to commemorate October as domestic the violence awareness month.
The One Voice human chain had Daya volunteers holding up posters urging motorists to honk in support of an end to domestic violence.
Daya volunteers, staffers, board members and volunteers formed a human chain along Hillcroft at the intersection of Harwin with posters urging motorists to honk their horns in support of South Asian families in crisis. Adding to the voices of the Daya volunteers was the Bollywood music booming from a loud speaker and the beat drummed by a dhol player provided by DJ Yogi’s team.
This was the 8th annual One Voice gathering held in cooperation with Houston Police Department’s Domestic Violence Unit. Officer Muzaffar Siddiqi, who serves as the South Asian liaison for HPD, has been involved since the beginning.
HPD Officer Muzaffar Siddiqi and his daughter Dania participated in the One Voice human chain.
After the attendees participated in the human chain, they gathered for lunch featuring biryani, fried chicken and cookies.
A large number of mainstream and South Asian community organizations and businesses helped sponsor the rally. Space sponsor was EK Perfumes. Event sponsors included Simmons Foundation, Houston Endowment and Indo-American Charity Foundation. Food was contributed by Kohinoor Diamonds, Mayuri Restaurant, Udipi Café, Raja Sweets and Church’s Chicken.
DJ Yogi’s team provided the strong beat of dhol and Bollywood music.
Sam Merchant, outreach liaison for U.S. Congressman Al Green, presented a certificate of appreciation to Daya Houston President Jyoti Kulkarni and Daya participants.
Daya promotes healthy family relationships in the South-Asian community by providing services that include counseling, referrals, legal advocacy, and financial support to women and children affected by family violence and sexual assault.
Daya’s help line: (713) 981-7645.