University of Wisconsin women take back the night
“However we dress, wherever we go, yes means yes, and no means no!”
The night of November 9th chants of solidarity, support, and power could be heard throughout the streets of Madison. This was due to the second annual Rally Against Sexual Assault.
Protesters gathered in front of Bascom Hall with signs at the ready. Such signs read: “Fuck Rape Culture”, “Nasty Women Fight Back”, “Consent is Hot Assault is Not”, and “The Absent No is NOT a YES”.
They began their protest by walking down Bascom Hill, down State Street to Henry Street, and then over to Langdon Street before making their way to Library Mall. Throughout the walk chants brought a sense of camaraderie and power amongst the group, “hey hey, ho ho, rape culture must go”, “gay, straight, black, white, one struggle, one fight”, and “however we dress, wherever we go, yes means yes, and no means no”.
At one point the protest held up traffic on State and Henry as the leaders spoke towards the importance of the event and stated it was the students’ campus, and they could make the cars wait.
Claire VanValkenburg speaking
The election seemed to make the rally have even greater importance for those who participated, rally organizer Claire VanValkenburg spoke to this: “I think it was so impactful after the new president was elected, because a lot of women, including myself, feel unsafe and threatened living in a country where the head of state has assaulted women and stated he believes those survivors should be sued. It was really powerful to stand there with people who believed in same things I do, because after the results last night I’ve just felt really alone, and I think the idea of solidarity resonated with a lot of folks there tonight.”
The rally’s end at Library Mall offered a forum for survivors and activists to speak. Bringing real life examples to the importance of the rally as a whole, as survivors and those in solidarity with them were able to provide a comforting and impactful place for discussion.