The CSUN students raised their signs and candles as they chanted and marched, spreading awareness of sexual violence as it affects college students, encouraging students to commune with people of similar experience and take action in preventing future sexual violence.
The Women’s Research and Resource Center in the College of Humanities organized CSUN’s 20th annual Take Back The Night on March 28. Take Back The Night is an event that raises awareness and advocates for survivors of patriarchal violence including sexual assault, sexual abuse, trafficking, stalking, gender harassment and relationship violence, and to support survivors in their healing journeys.
Shira Brown, director of the Women’s Resource and Research Center, reflected on the importance of Take Back The Night.
“People can become complacent…and it is important to publicly confront what is happening, and the best way to do that is in these ways because you can’t be silent around issues of sexual assault,” Brown said.
Shalom Headly, a student who participated in the march, expressed why events like Take Back The Night are essential for bringing people together.
“I think these events are important for raising awareness and building community,” Headly said.
Another Take Back The Night participant, Cameron Woods, emphasized why bringing people together for serious issues like sexual violence can be a great resource for many people.
“I came to the rally last year and I fell in love with it. It helped me find a community and it started really making me heal in new ways,” Woods said. “It is important to fight against sexual and domestic violence because of just how much it is still happening.”
The event included various speakers expressing the need for Take Back The Night and how the dangers of sexual violence are still present today. Among the speakers was William Watkins, CSUN’s vice president for Student Affairs and dean of students, emphasized the need for events like Take Back The Night, citing statistics that one in three women worldwide have experienced sexual violence and intimate partner violence, one in six men have experienced sexual violence, and two in three transgender people have been sexuality assaulted.
The event kicked off with a performance from hip-hop duo Black From Home. During the performance, students painted signs for the march and checked out tables for the Women’s Research and Resource Center and various other resources provided by organizations like D.A.T.E. (Discovering Alternatives for Today’s Encounters) that deal with sexual assault that are available for students.
