Northwest's Denim Day has students reflect with their jeans - Northwest Missourian

The simple act of wearing denim showed solidarity and support to survivors of sexual assault.

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and the office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, as well as the Green Dot Program, sponsored Denim Day April 4.

Denim Day is an event spawned from a sexual assault case that happened in the 1990s.

An Italian woman was allegedly assaulted by her driving instructor, but upon appeal, the judge ruled the incident in question must have been consensual because the woman’s jeans were tight, therefore she must have helped her assailant remove them. When the women in the Italian Parliament heard the ruling in the case, they were outraged by “victim blaming mentality” and wore denim to work in solidarity with the survivor.

Danielle Koonce, the Violence Prevention and Green Dot coordinator said victim blaming is an issue we are still dealing with today.

“We still see victim blaming today, and we continue Denim Day to show support to survivors and to let everyone know we don’t tolerate violence or victim blaming,” Koonce said.

Koonce and the Concerned Advocates for Relationship Equality (CARE), hosted an info table this week, and raised money for the Children and Family Center to help those who are struggling to make ends meet. The whole month is a collaboration between CARE and Koonce to create events for students, as well as staff members.

“Green Dot and CARE worked together to make sure Human Resources was in support and willing to serve as a donation location,” Koonce said. “Then we spread the word on campus by sending information out to faculty, staff and students via email and social media.”

David Anzures, a junior human services major, is glad that the Green Dot program is creating a space where these issues are being discussed.

“I’m glad Northwest has the privilege and opportunity of having this amazing program and also the ability to hire someone who specifically works on issues directly related to sexual violence,” Anzures said. “Green Dot does an amazing job in stopping sexual assault/violence before it even gets to happen through discussion, training sessions and programming to raise awareness and effectively prevent sexual violence in the future.”

Koonce wants students and staff to realize this is more than just spreading awareness about sexual assault.

“I want people to know that we’re asking them to go a little beyond only ‘awareness,’”  Koonce said. “We’re asking them to act when they see something concerning, when they see something that gives them a gut feeling something might be wrong.”

Anzures believes Denim Day is a great way to start a conversation with the community

“Denim Day is important because it centers the conversation around survivors of sexual assault,” Anzures said. “It shows a message of solidarity for survivors of sexual assault at Northwest and all around the world. Most importantly, it’s an invitation for discussion surrounding the many nuances of sexual assault/violence such as rape culture, victim blaming etc.”

Koonce continues to believe that everyone can do better and stand up to prevent future acts of violence.

“We have all been imperfect bystanders, but there’s so many small things we can do that have the power to interrupt violence,” Koonce said. “Just asking someone if everything is okay has the power to change a situation for the better.”

While this is a great way to support survivors, it is still an issue many deal with, especially on a college campus.

“I honestly think this issue is something important for everyone, regardless of age,” Koonce said. “Victim blaming and assault are definitely not something that is exclusive to Northwest or the college population, but I do think that, as a campus, we have a particular energy and ability to move people to action, to have these important conversations.”

Koonce believes that the change starts with us on this campus, and can lead to further change in the future.

“I believe that starting with us, with our campus, we can drive culture change and see a reduction in violence by letting others know that we do not tolerate relationship or sexual violence, and doing something when we see something,” Koonce said.

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