The University of Connecticut Undergraduate Student Government hosted a ‘Take Back the Night’ rally Sunday outside the Student Union, calling for an end to rape culture on college campuses.
UConn stood with over 100 other universities nationwide, each united in the fight to end sexual violence of all forms, including sexual assault, sexual abuse, trafficking, stalking, gender harassment and relationship violence, according to the Take Back the Night Foundation’s website.
UConn was one of three colleges in Connecticut to participate, along with Wesleyan University and Yale University.
“I felt it was important to have [a protest] here at UConn to show our support and persistence as a community, and to join the national movement that is bigger than ourselves,” Take Back the Night Intern Natalie Daponte said.
At UConn, the event, which aimed to support survivors in their healing journeys, drew in a crowd of approximately 50 people who huddled together on the chilly evening and held candles to illuminate the gathering.
The rally brought together students, alumni and faculty, who united together and said they were ready for a change.
“The sexual violence that we’re seeing on college campuses, from every single corner of them, is unacceptable,” Marc DeBrito, a third-semester honors political science student said. “We are seeing a rollback in safety at this time with the absence of blue lights.”
One attendee who asked to remain anonymous said they experienced sexual violence and thought the rally Sunday helped other victims.
“I’ve been a survivor of some instances myself; I think it’s good to bring awareness,” the participant said.
The event featured a panel of several speakers who each offered different perspectives about advocacy and support.
The speeches were followed by a march around the Student Union lawn where the group’s chants echoed throughout campus.
In her speech, Hannah Halloran, the coordinator for student support services and bystander initiatives in the Dean of Students Office, said that sexual violence prevention must happen every day in big and small ways, arguing that “change happens when students speak up.”
Halloran also offered her support and services to attendees.
“I’m here to listen to you, to be angry with you and to guide you,” Halloran said. “While I may not be able to solve every problem, I will continue to fight for you in every way that I can.”
Halloran left the event following her speech to give attendees the space to share their experiences without fear of being reported.
Another student speaker from USG, William Lipinski, said that men have an important role to play in the fight to end sexual violence, and spoke about how LGBTQ+ members of the community are disproportionately affected by sexual violence.
“Part of being a community is all about stopping ourselves from turning a blind eye towards issues we believe don’t affect us, when in reality they do,” Lipinski said.
Katie Roy, a project coordinator at Student Health and Wellness, took a different approach to her speech by inviting the audience to take a collective deep breath at the beginning.
Roy’s speech focused on the practices the UConn community can employ to work towards a future in which “nobody has to earn their dignity, where care is not conditional and where everyone can feel safe enough to be fully themselves.”
“Safety is not simply the absence of violence,” Roy said. “Safety is something we create together with intention and choice, in every moment.”
The series of speeches concluded with a proposed student mandate consisting of five points, which was outlined by Daponte and the USG President Venice Montanaro.
The mandate called for the following measures: evidence-based prevention education for every student, trauma-informed investigation and independent oversight, 24-hour emergency response services and sexual assault reporting, monthly public reporting and the use of UConn expertise to modernize outdated sexual assault laws.
“You recruited us, admitted us and promised to keep us safe,” Daponte said. “Yet our classmates are still being assaulted in your residence halls, fraternity houses and athletic facilities.”
The full student mandate will go up in call to action for USG legislation, Daponte said.
After the march, attendees relocated to the Student Union terrace until late at night where they shared their stories to create a supportive environment for collective healing. They continued to speak with a megaphone even after the equipment was packed up.
“Together, we can shatter the silence and end sexual violence,” Daponte said.