A protest that refuses to be silent about sexual violence–and reflects on what has happened

“Take Back the Night” is an action created to enable large numbers of women to publicly express our anger at the sexual violence that goes on and the victim blaming that accompanies it. Not every woman has been sexually assaulted, but every woman has been taught to fear it. We are told from the time we are young not to walk alone, not to go out after dark, to avoid strangers and to avoid dangerous areas of town. This advice is useless in the face of the reality that the largest number of women experience violence in their own home, at the hand of someone they know. [Source: Newfoundland and Labrador Sexual Assault Crisis & Prevention Centre] (more…)

Social networking’s involvement in sexual assaults reveals dark side of technology

Pictures of the gang rape of a 16-year-old girl at a weekend party east of Vancouver were circulated on the Internet via Facebook, police told reporters last week. But despite efforts to halt the spread of the images, after the initial web posting was shut down copies continued to spread across the Internet. One of the lead investigators on the case has stated the obvious—that the re-posting of the photos is only making the horror for the victim worse. The girl’s father told the Vancouver Sun, “For me it’s unbelievable in this day and age, youth are so desensitized to crime and pornography.” Since the incident, two arrests have been made. (more…)