If you happened to be around the Downtown Mall or the Amphitheater last night, you might have seen an unusual sight -- students coming together for the annualTake Back the Night protesting against sexual assault and domestic violence.
"Sexual assault is an important issue across the country and the world," said fourth-year College student Emily Saunders, co-coordinator of the event as an external chair for the Sexual Assault Leadership Council, one of the event's sponsors. "I think it is really important for students to know that it is a reality at our university as well. And Take Back the Night is the perfect way to acknowledge this reality."
Third-year College student Stephanie Hall, who has attended the event for the past two years, said she finds it necessary that students pay more attention to the issue of sexual assault on college campuses.
"Personally, I do not feel that the issue of sexual assault and rape on university campuses ever receives the amount of attention it deserves," Hall said. "So it is really important there are events like Take Back the Night to bring attention to such an important issue."
Saunders said she also believes the issue is ignored.
"We are living in a culture of silence," Saunders said. "Even though [some form of sexual assault] occurs 23 times in an hour in our country, even though it happens that often, we don't yet live in a society where survivors can comfortably talk about what they have been through."
Third-year College student Kimberly Steimel, an executive board member of Allies of Women Attaining Knowledge and Enrichment, which is cosponsoring the event, cited recent allegation sof rape by a a local exort against three members of the Duke Lacrosse team as an example of why the issue should be discussed more openly and more frequently.
"I think that the recent events at Duke serve to illustrate that there is still a great need for awareness and education about sexual assault," Steimel said. "Sexual assault is still a problem on college campuses today, and that's why everyone needs to do something about it."
Steimel said that Take Back the Night allows for the recognition of the issue in many ways.
"Take Back the Night calls attention to the presence of sexual assault within our community by making it visible," Steimel said. "Part of Take Back the Night involves the creation of stars which survivors or survivor supporters can create on the Lawn to tell their stories. These are being displayed on a larger star in the Amphitheater."
Fourth-year College student and on Grounds National Organization for Women President Jocelyn Guest said the overall support from the male population of the University community has been very strong.
"I think that male support to the event is fantastic," Guest said. "We have been communicating with the Greek community, reaching out to very different groups. Clearly the gender make up of the university is more female ... But the vigil has never been a 100 percent female thing. There are male survivors. And there are also many males who support the female survivors."
Like previous years, this year's event was composed of a rally at Lee Park at the Downtown Mall, a march to Central Grounds from Lee Park and a vigil at the Amphitheatre where sexual assault and domestic violence survivors speak of their experiences.
Guest said this year's event was also preceded by weeklong activities which included a forum on Exploring Responses to Sexual Violence Through Religion Monday, a one-woman show named "Rosey's Story" Tuesday and a forum on Dating a Survivor Wednesday.
"This year we really did expand Take Back the Night into a week of activities which showed different aspects of dealing with and reacting to the issue of sexual assault," Guest said.
Guest said the nature of the event is far from being an angry outburst.
Sexual assault "is a thing that men and women think about at college," Guest said. "And Take Back the Night is a great way for people to think about it in a positive environment. It is not an angry and finger-pointing event. The aim is to work toward a solution together."
Saunders said the vigil is structured in a way to promote an atmosphere of comfort that allows for survivors to come out and share their stories.
Nobody is contacted or persuaded to speak ot in advance of the event, Saunders said.
"Everyone who talks does it because it is their own choice," Saunders said. "And that's what makes the whole night such a good healing process for them and gives the listeners such a good understanding of the issue"
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