Denim Day Brings Awareness To The Bronco Student Center

On Wednesday, April 25, students, staff, Associated Students Inc. (ASI) Student Activities and Programs (SAP), Survivor Advocacy Services (SAS), Student Health and Counseling Services (SCHS), Project Sister, House of Ruth and Pacific Clinics gathered in front of the Bronco Student Center, Ursa Major C (BSC, Bldg. 35-2611 C) clad in denim to observe the Denim Day exhibit, which showcased art and writings from student survivors of sexual assault.

April is recognized as Sexual Assault Awareness Month and Denim Day is set on the third Wednesday of April each year.

Why denim, you might ask? SAS Peer Educator, Lorenzo Alvarado explained, “The origin of Denim Day comes from a [1992] court case in Italy, where the original perpetrator’s conviction was overturned because his lawyer made an argument that the survivor’s jeans were too tight, or basically impossible for him to take off without her assistance and therefore, there must have been some consent.” He continued, “That is why we honor Denim Day, an international day of solidarity to combat rape culture and show solidarity to survivors by wearing denim.”

This three-part exhibit begins with the Collage of Courage, a collection of artwork made by survivors, then with the Silhouettes of Serenity. “The silhouettes and narratives depict that there are no specific characteristics of being a survivor,” said SAS coordinator, Naomi Chu. The last part of the exhibit is the Echo and Response wall, where observers can respond to the survivors’ stories by writing on a note card and displaying it on the wall.

Kaitlin Espinoza, a second-year psychology student, was especially moved by the exhibit and stated, “I didn’t know about Denim Day before, but I learned and took away a lot from this event and now I’m aware of it.” She continued, “This event is important to have on our campus because we’re able to see the effects of sexual assault visually. It’s one thing to hear about it or talk about it, but to see it in a place that’s so public in our school is not only important but necessary. These stories are very sad, but I think that it’s very brave that these survivors are sharing them.”

Arianne Coleto, a SAP Art Program Assistant, was in charge of working the event behind-the-scenes. She helped out with the logistics of the event and introduced attendees to the exhibit. “The event turned out very well. Organizations and groups from various parts of campus came by and all took it very seriously,” she added, “it’s important to acknowledge Denim Day on campus because a lot of people don’t have the voice to talk about being a victim of sexual assault and this day and exhibit gives them a voice to speak about it, because there obviously needs to be a change.”

The exhibit will be displayed for the entire duration of spring quarter. Note cards are still available at the Echo and Response wall for students to display words of encouragement to survivors until spring quarter ends.

“As peer educators at Survivor Advocacy Services, we are here for survivors,” Jocelyn Lopez said. “If you need to set up any appointment, Naomi, our survivor advocate can help. We also have a lot of different events and programs throughout the year to spread awareness about sexual assault and to educate the student population about sexual assault and how to prevent it.”

“This exhibit shows others who may have experienced something similar to know that they are not alone,” said Chu. The Survivor Advocacy Services building is located at the Bronco Bookstore building (Bldg. 66-117B) and their email is survivoradvocacy@cpp.edu.

To stay updated on all the events happening at the BSC (Bldg. 35), be sure to follow the BSC on Facebook and Twitter.