Student Reporter: Denim Day for a very good cause

 

By Brittney Manson, MCC Student Reporter

We show our support by wearing denim and you should too.

In 1998, a young girl was picked up by her driving instructor for her first lesson. After he raped her, he threatened to kill her if she told anyone, but she told her parents and he was sent to jail.

The perpetrator appealed the case and the trial made it to the Italian Supreme Court. It was there that the case was dismissed because the court claimed that the girl’s jeans were so tight, she would have had to help the suspect remove them.  That the court claimed made it consensual.

Outraged, the women of Parliament came to work in jeans the next day. As word of the case and the protest spread, Denim Day evolved and took hold around the world.

Denim Day is a protest against sexual assault and the myths surrounding it. It was first organized in 1999 and the campaign has grown over the past 19 years. 

It is always held on a Wednesday during April, which is Sexual Violence Awareness Month.

Mary Lou O’Connell visited the MCC Lake Havasu City campus for Denim Day.  She delivered two powerful presentations, “Start Believing” and “No More.”

The central purpose of Denim Day is to raise awareness about rape and sexual assault.

These kinds of things are difficult to talk about sometimes, but it is estimated that one out of every five American women have been raped. One in 71 American men have been raped.

Never be quiet, because these numbers are only from the cases that have been reported.

Now we’re armed a little more knowledge and, as they say, knowing is half the battle.