President Obama recently launched a new initiative aimed at bringing awareness to the number of sexual assaults on college campuses and created a task force to address the issue. According to a report released in January 2014 compiled by the White House Council on Women and Girls, nearly 22 million American women (1 in 5 women) and 1.6 million men (1 in 71 men) have been raped in their lifetime.
The University of Colorado Boulder Police Department is partnering with the Gender Justice League, a CU student group out of Women and Gender Studies, that is hosting Denim Days the week of April 21, 2014. In support of sexual assault victims and to bring awareness to the prevalence of sexual assault on college campuses, department members will be wearing blue ribbons this week and denim on Wednesday, April 23, 2014.
Denim Days originates from a 1999 Italian court case in which the National High Court overturned a rape case because the victim was wearing jeans. It was thought that jeans would have been too tight to pull off without the woman’s consent. The ruling sparked a nationwide protest where anti-rape activists wore jeans.
Please join us in support of Denim Days by wearing denim this week. The Gender Justice League is hosting several events this week. Visit their website at for a detailed schedule.
If you or a friend have been the victim of a sexual assault, the following information and resources may be helpful:
- CU Police - Crime victim rights and information
- CU Office of Student Conduct - Guidelines for filing a complaint of sexual assault
- CU Office of Victim Assistance (OVA) - Free and confidential counseling and advocacy center focusing on trauma support for students, staff and faculty
- Moving to End Sexual Assault (MESA) - Support for sexual assault survivors in Boulder and Broomfield counties