by columnist Rebecca Fernandez
Halloween arrived a day late at The Ritz Carlton on November 1st where guests attending the 19th Annual Knock-Out-Abuse Gala were greeted by actors in costumes: They called it Moulin Rouge, we called it outlandish.
750 women gathered for a memorable evening – dinner, dancing, silent and live auctions, a special performance by the original human beat-box (say what?) and the 1980’s hip-hop star Doug E. Fresh. The evening was mc’d by WUSA9’s Andrea Roane.
Knock-Out-Abuse Against Women is a non-profit organization that builds public awareness and provides financial support to eliminate domestic violence by helping women and children whose lives have been shattered by abuse, poverty and homelessness.
This one night a year event has raised over 6.5 million dollars to restore the dignity and respect to thousands of victims of domestic violence in the National Capital, a true celebration of the power of women to effect change for the most vulnerable.
This year’s honoree was model, author and actress Carre Otis.
As a world famous model in the 80s and 90s, Carre grew increasingly concerned about unfair labor practices and poor working conditions in the modeling industry and has since become an advocate for young women in and out of the industry. “I came from a background where they told me to sit down, be pretty, and shut up,” she said.
In 2011, Carre published a memoir, Beauty Dis-rupted that talks about her struggles with the abuse in the modeling industry. “I wanted to be a voice and stand for something that goes against everything I stood for growing up.”
