Pieces of denim with messages on them hang from a clothesline on Norlin Quad Monday to raise awareness about sexual assault. The first annual Denim Day is on Wednesday. (CU Independent/Rob Denton)
A group of CU students are hosting the first annual Denim Day on Wednesday to raise awareness of sexual assault on college campuses. The day will include a march starting at Hazel Gates Woodruff Cottage and ending at Farrand Field at 4 p.m. Participants are encouraged to bring poetry for a poetry slam.
Denim Day was created in 2005 when an Italian court case ruled a rape conviction at the fault of the victim, ruling that it would have been impossible for the assailant to remove the victim’s jeans without her assistance. The day is meant to remind victims that they are not responsible for acts of rape.
Chelsea Sommer, a 22-year-old junior anthropology and women and gender studies major, is helping coordinate the event. Sommer said her goal this year is to reach out to men first and foremost.
Some of the men participating come from Greek Life, where two sororities and two fraternities are attending the event.
The fraternities participating are Sigma Phi Epsilon and Sigma Alpha Epsilon, while the sororities are Gamma Phi Beta and Sigma Psi Zeta.
The event will also have male representation from Men Standing Up, a group of Moving an End to Sexual Assault members who will show their support against rape and sexual assault.
Sommer said she wants CU students to realize that victim blaming is not the proper way to confront cases of rape and sexual assault.
Kacey Flemming, a 21-year-old senior and women and gender studies major, is also helping organize the event. Flemming said she is optimistic about the event and is proud of the amount of support they’ve received from the CU community.
“It’s been really nice to see student voices come out in the denim art display because the artwork is created by the students,” Flemming said.
Along with other personal testimonies, Flemming contributed her own rape story on a patch of denim.
Many CU students support the event, including Sean Connell, a 21-year-old junior and English and pre-law major. Connell said he believes men have an equally active role in preventing rape as women do.
“I really think it’s important to confront the cultural norms around violence and inequality that make rape happen instead of blaming the victims of rape for being too drunk or too provocative,” Connell said.
The Denim Day event is driving non-CU students to get involved in the march as well. Kindra Weisbrod, a UCD student, is heading up to Boulder on Wednesday just for the event.
Weisbrod’s personal connection to the event derives from her experience as an intern at a domestic abuse resource center, and has inspired her to become an activist against rape.
“It doesn’t matter if you identify as male, female, gender queer, transexual, gay, straight, bisexual, or anything else,” Weisbrod said. “No one has the right to be assaulted, and I am proud to be a part of a rally that believes the same ideal.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Audrey Hoffman-Lekmine at Audrey.hoffmanlekmine@colorado.edu.
