T-shirts with messages against sexual assault are displayed outside the Lyceum Tuesday. Photo: Adytia Khare, The Daily Mississippian.
The Take Back the Night march took place April 22 at the Lyceum Circle, as part of the Violence Prevention Office’s Sexual Assault Awareness programming for the month of April.
The goal of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, as well as the march itself, is to reduce the rates and risk of sexual assault by raising awareness for both the prevalence of sexual violence and the resources available to victims of sexual violence.
Lindsey Bartlett, violence prevention coordinator and organizer of the march, said the importance of the march is an opportunity for “the campus and community to come out and show that we don’t approve of violence happening in our community, whether it’s sexual violence, relationship violence, stalking or anything else.”
The opening speeches made by Assistant Director of Health Promotions Erin Cromeans and Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Brandi Hephner LeBanc both focused extensively on the power of the bystander to intervene and prevent violence to others.
Cromeans encouraged students to “take (their) gut reactions and stand up,” and “to commit to doing something” on the behalf of those in danger of becoming victims of sexual violence.
Hephner LeBanc emphasized the importance of students in the fight against sexual violence.
“You have so much power, and that’s part of being the family that we are at The University of Mississippi,” she said.
The march was part of the national initiative of the Take Back the Night Foundation, a charitable foundation founded in the 1970s.
According to the Take Back the Night Foundation’s mission statement, the foundation aims to “create safe communities and respectful relationships through awareness events and initiatives,” as well as, “end sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, sexual abuse and all other forms of sexual violence.”
The brothers of Alpha Phi Alpha began and led the march, carrying a Take Back the Night banner and starting the chants. Among them were “Two, four, six, eight. No more date rape,” “Out of the halls, into the street. We won’t be raped, we won’t be beat” and “Hotty Toddy, it’s my body.”
The march ended with a candlelight vigil that included a “speak out” portion, which provided a moderated open forum for anyone who wanted to share their personal experiences. Survivors were also encouraged to send in written accounts of their experiences to be read by Bartlett.
According to Bartlett, sexual violence “is an issue that affects college campuses everywhere. One in five students experience sexual violence in their college career. It’s a huge issue. The White House has a task force right now exploring the issue, and our campus isn’t immune to it. So we’re doing everything we can to show that we don’t approve of the violence that’s happening.”
Tying into earlier Sexual Assault Awareness Month programming, the t-shirts made through Project Clothesline were on display in the Circle throughout the march. The t-shirts were made by survivors of sexual assault, as well as the friends and family of survivors, to express their feelings about assault.
Laura Dona, freshman anthropology and classics double major, expressed her thoughts at the event.
“I think it’s great that they’re letting women know that they have these kinds of resources available to them, even if it can sometimes be hard or uncomfortable to talk about,” Dona said.
— Katelyn Miller
kamille3@go.olemiss.edu
