Content warning: This post includes discussions of sexual assault.
Thanks to movements like #MeToo, which seeks to support survivors, conversations around sexual assault and rape culture are becoming more frequent online and across university campuses. But stigma around sexual assault and the normalization of rape culture are still pervasive, especially at college. April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, meaning that now, more than ever, it’s important to change that narrative — and Denim Day, an annual campaign started by nonprofit Peace Over Violence, is one of the ways college students can fight back against all forms of sexual violence.
As implied by the name, Denim Day is when people all around the world wear jeans or other denim articles of clothing to show solidarity for survivors. However, Denim Day is about more than just what you wear — it seeks to start conversations around victim blaming and rape culture. This year’s Denim Day takes place on April 27, which is just around the corner — so if you’re looking to observe Sexual Assault Awareness Month on your campus and to make fellow students aware of the work left to be done in dismantling harmful myths around sexual violence, here’s what you need to know about this important holiday.
Denim Day started as an Italian movement in the 1990s.
Denim Day has been around for 23 years, according to the official Denim Day website, with roots in Italy and one Italian Supreme Court case. In 1992, a 45-year-old driving instructor in Italy raped an 18-year-old girl, his driving student, during her first lesson. Although she reported the rape, the man was released from jail with his conviction overturned by the Italian Supreme Court years later because of the “jeans alibi,” or his claim that the survivor helped him remove her tight jeans and therefore consented.
According to the New York Times, this incensed female Italian lawmakers, who then went on a “jeans strike” and wore jeans to Parliament in protest. The Denim Day website states that the movement then spread to the California Senate and Assembly, catching the attention of Peace Over Violence, which is based in LA. The first official Denim Day was held in LA in April 1999, marking the start of the annual observance of Denim Day worldwide.
Denim Day is still just as necessary in 2022 as it was when it started.
While we may want to believe that sexual violence is nothing like it was in the 1990s, when it was much further stigmatized, we still have a lot of work to do. The Denim Day website contains staggering statistics about the prevalence of sexual violence in our everyday lives that people can look through to get a better understanding of why this day is so needed.
According to the CDC, nearly one in three women and one in four men experience sexual violence involving physical contact at some point in their lifetime. And many of these crimes occur without justice for the survivor: As reported by RAINN, for every 1,000 sexual assaults, 975 perpetrators will walk free. Part of this has to do with the stigma around reporting sexual assault, which is driven by fear of retaliation and lack of hope that anything good will come out reporting, among other factors, according to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. RAINN reports that only 310 of every 1,000 sexual assaults are actually reported to the police.
As long as this culture of silence, shame, and victim-blaming continues, survivors may be left isolated and afraid of speaking out about their experiences. Denim Day seeks to change that, and to create a community of support for survivors.
How you can get involved with Denim Day this year
If you want to observe Denim Day as a college student, the most obvious solution is to wear jeans on April 27. But that’s not all you can, or should, do to take part.
One of the most impactful ways to make a difference this year is to donate to Peace Over Violence. You can make a one-time donation, or have a standing weekly or monthly donation that goes to the organization. As stated on their website, all funds go toward helping survivors through free counseling, hospital accompaniments and advocacy, support groups, legal services and a 24-hour hotline. Donations are also put toward rape prevention education.
You can also buy more Denim Day merch from the Peace Over Violence shop to support the cause, though you’ll have to place orders by the end of April 20 to receive them in time. The shop has t-shirts, hats, pins, and stickers with empowering messages on them to show support for survivors and say no to rape culture.
Want to get others on your campus involved and spread necessary information and resources? You can purchase the Denim Day action kit for $25 to get online access to presentations, readings, imagery, sample tweets, and more. You can educate yourself and those around you for how to best observe this holiday and also print out the action signs included and bring them to protests or events with you. Your purchase will also go toward the services for survivors mentioned earlier.
The Denim Day action kit also contains headers for Facebook, Twitter, and email, and Instagram story images, so you can call for awareness through social media using official Denim Day materials.
If you’re short on cash, don’t worry — you can still be a part of Denim Day for free. You can take the Denim Day pledge, which acknowledges your responsibility to bring awareness to this issue and challenge misconceptions about sexual violence, and spread it around on social media.
No matter what you choose to do, Denim Day is just one of many ways you can put your support for survivors of sexual violence into action. When we all do our part to challenge the long-held narratives around consent and the stigmatization of sexual assault, we all benefit from a safer and more supportive commmunity.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, call the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit online.rainn.org.