Humboldt State hosts Denim Day on the Quad

Link

Embed

Copy and paste this HTML code into your webpage to embed.

ARCATA, CA., (KIEM) – Denim Day is a nationwide movement that is bringing sexual assault awareness to the forefront. On Wednesday, Humboldt State University Students wrote phrases like “consent is an enthusiastic yes” and “believe survivors” on their jeans.

In the early 90’s an 18-year-old Italian woman was reportedly raped by her 45-year-old driving instructor. The case went to the Italian Supreme Court, and they overturned the ruling. They made the decision because they said the victim’s jeans were so tight, she had to help him remove them.

“What we wear does not define who we are and what we wear also does not define if we give consent or not. Basically, yes means yes and no means no,” said Santana Garcia, the Chapter President of Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority.

Humboldt State Junior Marisol Angeles has a story of her own. She said she was sexually assaulted by a family member while growing up.

“I couldn’t actually get him off. I lost my voice. I loss power over my body. I felt selfless in the moment where he was on top. No way to scream or ask for help,” said Angeles the Elemntry Education Major.

Angeles said she was sexually assaulted by a man in her family who started raping her at the age of three. It’s something she didn’t quite understand right away.

“My childhood was definitely turned upside-down. I didn’t know what the term raped was until I reached third grade when I was able to pick up a dictionary,” said Angeles.

Angeles still has trust issues in relationships today.

“I would have the tendency to have [my partner] get off of me, [because] of the [re-encounters] of the event that happened,” said Angeles.

As a sexual assault survivor, Angeles is an advocate who wants to bring awareness to the cause. She wants to help others who went through similar experiences.

“For the ones that are going through this, my message to you is you’re not alone. You may feel like the world is crumbling down. But you have so much support. There are so many ways to get help,” said Angeles.

For more information on Denim Day and how to join the movement, visit DenimDayInfo.org.