“Maybe that explains why I feel electrocuted when somebody touches me without my consent. Maybe that explains why I feel shocked nobody ever did anything about it.”
That is an excerpt of what Audrey Tobyas, a junior linguistics major and Slam poet, shared from a personal experience poem she recited at the “Take Back the Night” walk on Friday, an event coordinated in support of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
Tobyas said she felt compelled to share her voice because so many victims of sexual assault, for a variety of reasons, may never get the opportunity to have theirs heard.
“One of the biggest things I struggled with was feeling like I didn’t have a voice,” Tobyas said.
The UNM Student Alliance for Reproductive Justice, who also helped coordinate SexUality Week, saw dozens of organizers and students assemble near the Cornell parking structure at around 7:00 p.m.
Nick Montoya, a junior engineering major, and Catherine Cook, a senior English studies major, organized the walk, saying they felt it was important to raise awareness in the fight to combat sexual violence on campus.
Planned Parenthood provides funding and tools for the student organization to be successful, and Montoya and Cook said they were happy to work with some of the other organizations on campus that help students and advocate for change.
Cook said resources such as the LGBTQ Advocacy Center, LoboRESPECT, Women’s Resource Center and Revoking Silence are all very valuable. She said she believes the University can continue to improve, and things are moving in the right direction.
“I think the school has taken a lot of really positive steps in the last couple of years,” she said. “But there is definitely still more to be done.”
Charlene Blackledge, a sophomore sociology major and member of UNM SARJ, said there should be a lot more University-specific training and education. She said she believes providing a better understanding of consent can go a long way in preventing sexual violence.
“Consent needs to be sober, continuous and enthusiastic,” she said. “If we have a better culture of consent, then I think sexual violence (incidents) will go down.”
A handful of guest speakers, including representatives from LoboRESPECT and the Women’s Resource Center, addressed attendants about how to confidentially and anonymously report issues and get assistance.
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Bianca Villani of the Rape Crisis Center of Central New Mexico said although prevention is the ultimate goal, the community and survivors of sexual assault still need help healing.
Victim blaming is another potential obstacle people have to overcome when deciding to report an incident. Villani said victims should never have to apologize, adding that rape is not supposed to happen to anyone; it is not part of the human experience.
As the speeches concluded, people started to adorn multi-colored glow sticks as the sun began to set, picking up several hand-made signs to prepare for the walk around the campus.
As the group marched around Johnson Field, a group of football players raised their hands and cars honked their approval in response to chants such as “whatever we wear, wherever we go, yes means yes and no means no.”
UNM SARJ member viewed the walk as a positive way to bring Sexual Assault Awareness Month to a close. Montoya said students can find out more information about the organization on facebook.com/unmsarj or come to their weekly meeting on Friday at 3:30 p.m. in the Women’s Resource Center.
Robert Maler is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers cross country, tennis, and track and field. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @robert_maler.
