Taking Back the Night

Trine invites community to join march

 

March 25, 2010--In conjunction with Sexual Assault Awareness Month, Trine University’s Office of Student Life, Department of Criminal Justice, Psychology & Social Sciences and Bacchus, Circle K, Sigma Phi Epsilon, Kappa Sigma Alpha, Delta Chi and Alpha Sigma student organizations will host the ninth annual Take Back the Night march and rally Wednesday, April 7 beginning at 7 p.m. on the Best Hall north lawn.

Take Back the Night began in England in 1977 as a women-only protest against the violence and fear women encountered walking on city streets at night. After San Francisco staged a similar event the next year, Take Back the Night rallies spread across the country, particularly among college campuses. 

The evening will open with games, pizza, sandwiches and other refreshments on the Best Hall north lawn. At 7:30 p.m., guest speakers, including Tena Dellaca-Hedrick from the Fort Wayne Sexual Assault Treatment Center, will speak on the subject of sexual assault and violence. In case of inclement weather, activities will move to Best Hall 229.

At 8 p.m., the group will march from Trine’s University Avenue to Monument Circle in Angola to demonstrate their unity in confronting sexual and domestic violence and violence against women and children. The evening will conclude with a candlelight vigil in support and honor of victims’ rights. The event will remind everyone that all human beings have a right to be free from violence, to be heard, and to reclaim those rights if they have been violated.

The rally and march are open to the community.

To further arm the Trine community against sexual assault, the Office of Student Life and the Community Anti-Violence Alliance (CAVA) will sponsor a self-defense course. Jason Sheppard from the American Taekwondo Association Black Belt Academy will teach the class on Wednesday, April 14 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in Witmer Clubhouse.

The cost for faculty and staff is $15, but students can attend without charge. Participants should sign up in the Office of Student Life before the class, as course materials will be provided. A key chain with a Kubaton self-defense weapon will also be given to everyone taking the class.