STORY & PHOTO BY PIXIE IWATA
STAFF WRITER
This article talks about sexual abuse and rape.
Cypress College’s Health Center, Active Minds, and EOPS hosted a resource fair at the gateway plaza on Wednesday, April 27th in observation of Denim Day.
Denim Day is practiced on the last Wednesday of April every year in honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. On this day it is encouraged to wear denim to spread awareness about the misconceptions of sexual assault and violence.
This day of action began in 1999 due to a ruling by the Italian Supreme Court which overturned a rape conviction because they believed that the young woman’s jeans were too tight, so she must have helped the man who raped her take them off. Every year since this ruling, the Peace Over Violence organization has organized Denim Day, which is now celebrated across the world.
To commemorate this day, the Health Center provided resources for those who have experienced sexual violence or assault. There were tents propped up from the EOPS, Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services, and other resources to provide knowledge and help for students.
All over the plaza t-shirts were hanging up for the Orange County Clothesline Project. Each shirt color represented something different. For example, black was sexual harassment, green and blue were child sexual abuse, grey was human trafficking, etc. All these items had a quote written on them from the victims or the victim’s family members telling their stories.
Below are some resources available,
Sexual Abuse Victims Hotline: 1.800.656.HOPE
National Suicide Prevention Hotline: English: 1.800.273.TALK Spanish: 1.888.628.9454
Crisis TEXT Hotline: Text SIGNS to 741741
Cypress College Resources:
Cypress College Health Center: (714) 484-7361
