By: Shaylie Pickerel
Staff Writer

Oct. 25 was the annual Take Back the Night event held by Abby’s House on the bottom floor of the Werner University Center.

This event is held on campus every October, during Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Take Back the Night began with an informational piece about the origins of this event.

The first Take Back the Night rally started in 1975 in response to the murder of Philadelphia-based microbiologist Susan Alexander Speeth, who was stabbed to death while walking home alone.

During the event, a gong is struck every nine seconds, representing how often women are beaten in the U.S. During this everyone is silent-showing respect and reflection for the event and victims lost to domestic violence and sexual assault. The power of the silence intensified after every gong ring.

Western’s President, Rex Fuller, was invited as a guest speaker. He expressed his feelings on the subject and shared some statistical facts surrounding campus safety and reported attacks. “Only 70 percent [of students] know where to go or what resources are available [after an attack],” said President Fuller.

Mary Ellen Dello Stritto, the coordinator for Abby’s House, also spoke about her opinion on the matter and how domestic violence and sexual assault affects Western students. She shared details about Green Dot and the training information that Campus Public Safety receives. Dello Stritto also shared educational facts about on-campus resources, including the three sexual assault nurse examiners on campus.

During the speaking portion, we also learned about the fears of the dark and human tendencies to blame victims. Following this, they had a portion called the speak out. The speak out is to give those who came to the event the chance to share their opinions or personal experiences.

Domestic violence and sexual assault are things that impact people’s lives and can be next to impossible to overcome. Take Back the Night participants marched through campus holding signs and candles to break the silence and to take back the night. “We are women, we are men. Together we fight to take back the night,” chanted students.

Aislinn Addington, the director of Abby’s House, discussed some of the actions that Western students can take to break the silence surrounding domestic violence. “The most important step is bystander intervention,” said Addington, “the incident [any form of domestic violence or sexual assault] doesn’t just affect the immediate parties, but all of us. It’s our job to talk about it and raise awareness.”

Take Back the Night occurs on campuses across the nations and serves as the, “hallmark event of Abby’s House.” Addington recommends that all students should, “take the pledge to take action.”

Contact the author at spickrell15@wou.edu