Support Denim Day

A friend informed me about this special event taking place this week through a Facebook status on Monday. After she told me what it was about I was so shocked at the reasoning behind Denim Day, and it pushed me one step further to support it.

In 1992 over in Italy an 18 year old girl was learning to drive when her driving instructor made a very bad mistake. After picking her up he raped her on the side of the road. She won her case against him, but he appealed it all the way to the Italian High Court. They over turned his charges based on the simple fact that she was wearing jeans…

The Italian High Court said that there was no way the instructor could have taken her “tight jeans” off himself, so for, assuming she had to have helped him which meant she gave consent, to be raped…

Since then Denim Day has been in affect to support rape victims and to bring awareness to the public about sexual assault. Now I’ve found two different sites that deal with Denim Day and they both say two different dates for this event so you can make up your own decision:

Support Denim Day is holding theirs this Thursday the 22nd of April.

Denim Day In LA is holding theirs tomorrow, this Wednesday the 21st of April.

The idea:

- Wear denim all day! It’s that simple, and spread the word. If you want to play even closer wear your TIGHTEST denim ever (that you can still walk and breath in) ie. skinny jeans, tight jeans or tight jean skirts.

P.S. Send College LIfestyles your photos of you and your girls wearing denim to support rape victims to intern@collegelifestyles.org!

Liz is an intern for College Lifestyles ™. She is a junior Print Journalism major at Point Park University and a proud sister of Alpha Sigma Tau. She wants to see all of you in your jeans this week!

Campus’ Silent Issue: Sexual Assault

How big of an issue are rape and sexual assault on your campus? Chances are, you may not know.

Legally, schools are required to report these crimes to their students via the Clery Report (named after Jeanne Clery was raped and murdered and did not know that violent crimes were occurring at her school). Many universities don’t enforce this or do not enforce it correctly, even though it’s against federal law.

Still, only 5 percent of rapes are reported (this is similar to other violent crimes). Most survivors know their attackers and therefore may find it more difficult to come forward to seek justice for fear of social ostracism—from both men and women.

Here’s a great link to a video my friend, Cameron Steele, did about this issue at Washington and Lee University.

So what can you do about it?

• If a survivor confides in you, always believe her. It takes a lot of courage to put oneself out there to potential criticism.

• Make sure she gets treatment from a university counseling or health center. Health and safety always come first. Many communities have a women’s shelter or hotline that can offer confidential assistance. Often campuses have resources to help victims learn about options for prosecuting an attacker.

• Take a R.A.D. class.  The self-defense classes are women-only and you can search for one in your area. It’s empowering to know you could defend yourself against an attacker.

• Know your campus statistics. Google your school’s name along with “Clery” to search for your school’s report on campus violence. Many schools also participate in the National College Health Assessment, which can give insight into campus sexual assault.

• Get involved with anti-sexual assault or women’s groups on campus. Start a clothesline campaign to help survivors and their friends reclaim their voices.

• Look out for everyone—not just friends. If you see a potentially dangerous situation at a party, be sure to intervene. The awkwardness of interrupting someone’s evening is far more attractive than being assaulted. Someone will be glad you did. Check out the Green Dot Campaign.

• Realize that only a small percentage of men are attackers. But statistically, attackers will attack multiple times.

• Consent is not the absence of a ‘no’ but the presence of a ‘yes.’ Alcohol impairs judgment.

When it comes to assault, we are all victims. Men, women, gay, straight, friends and family. Because if it affects one of us, it affects all of us.

Stephanie Hardiman is an intern with College Lifestyles (TM). She is a senior journalism major at Washington and Lee University. She is a proud sister of Pi Beta Phi and dreams of a day when her daughter can attend W&L without fear of sexual assault.

Break the Silence: (Domestic Violence Awareness Week 3)

In honor of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, for the month of October I’m posting about Domestic Violence Awareness once a week!  Missed the first two? Check them out here and here!

This week, I wanted to wait to post until after a really special event regarding Domestic Violence Awareness: Take Back the Night. Take Back the Night is an event dedicated to sexual assault and domestic violence victims. Here’s a little history from the Take Back the Night website: From the late 1970′s through present day, Take Back The Night events have been held by college and university women’s centers, YWCA’s, rape crisis centers, community centers, high school student groups, battered women’s shelters, and other organizations dedicated to helping women achieve safety and empowerment. Events have been held in England, Belgium, Australia, Canada, the Caribbean Islands, the United States, and likely other corners of the globe.

Every Take Back the Night ceremony is different, but I really wanted to share about the ceremony I went to because it was geared toward college students. A college student from Mizzou, Colleen McDevitt, decided to interview rape victims and put together a short film to get the word out there about sexual assault.

This is her video, “I’m a survivor of Rape”:

(You might wanna pause it & let it load. It takes awhile to load, but completely worth watching.)

Collen, Katie, Katlyn, Ellen, and Bonnie have brought up a very important issue through this video, and one that applies to most of us at College Lifestyles- the prevalence of sexual assault among college aged women. It is something that is more serious than you might think, and really common; Women ages 16 to 24 experience rape at rates four times higher than the assault rate of all women, making the college (and high school) years the most vulnerable for women. All 4 of these women in the video were 18 or older, and 3 of the 4 were in college at the time of their rape. The statistics are alarming of how common college rapes are; The most recent large-scale study, including students at both two- and four-year colleges, found 35 rapes per 1,000 female students over seven months (rape was defined as “unwanted completed penetration by force or threat of force”).

One thing that stood out to me about the women in the video was the fact that they all knew their rapist. A couple of them were dating their rapist, or their rapist was a friend. A couple of the girls from the video were at Take Back the Night to talk about their experiences , and they made a great point; they pointed out that often times we think of rape as the stranger that jumps out from behind a bush and rapes you. The truth is, though, that being raped by someone you know is way more likely; the statistics show that ninety percent of college women who are victims of rape or attempted rape know their assailant. The attacker is usually a classmate, friend, boyfriend, ex-boyfriend, or other acquaintance (in that order). The women in the video not only knew their attacker, but they trusted them.

We as college-aged women need to be aware of this. It’s scary how common this is. It could happen to one of us! Know what to do if this happens to you or your friends. Like I mentioned last week, Love is Respect has an online chat feature, or you can always call the National Domestic Violence Helpline at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE). The most important thing is if your friend has been raped to support them, and not treat them like they did something wrong. And if you have been raped or think you may have been raped, talk to someone you trust and get the help you need.

To learn more about Take Back the Night, visit the Take Back the Night website.

To learn more about the video, check out Colleen McDevitt’s blog or join the facebook group.

Statistics from Center for Problem Oriented Policing.

Patrice is an intern with College Lifestyles (TM). She is a journalism major at William Woods University, and is a member of Alpha Chi Omega. She feels strongly about domestic violence awareness and is enjoying spreading the word.