Completed 04.05.11
So, it was quite a bit different from most of the other protests I've participated in, but this past week my mom and I went to a Take Back the Night march & survivor speakout. It was hosted by HAVEN, a non-profit my friend Blair works for that offers a range of services for victims of abuse. It was on the campus of Oakland University, as Take Back the Night marches are usually on campuses. It seemed a bit odd since I wasn't a student there...walking through a campus I had no connection to, at night when not many students are around. I'm sure it held more meaning for OU students--we even had a girl join us who was just walking around campus!
The survivor speakout portion was really moving--yeah, I cried. Quite a bit. Listening to stories of survivors, what they went through, and how they got through it, made me so proud of them, and so grateful that I haven't had to deal with such tough issues. As a woman in this society, I've dealt with my share of harassment, cat calls and misogyny, but never anything as bad as family members assaulting you for years. I wanted to hug every person that spoke, but settled for just hugging our friend who did. They all have such courage, it is a true inspiration.
Here's an article on the march. To be fair, the video is of the beginning, when we were having a hard time getting the chants together :] If you look closely, you'll see my mom and I. And my friends Blair and Lauren are two of the people holding the banner!
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