Shouts of “break the silence, stop the violence!” could be heard as more than 150 students and faculty members marched down North O’Kelly Avenue, through Loy Center and past Alamance before stopping at Whitley Auditorium at Elon University.
The annual “Take Back the Night” march, organized by SPARKS to raise awareness of sexual and domestic violence, began in the Academic Pavilion with addresses from Elizabeth Nelson, associate director for health promotions and coordinator for interpersonal relations, Carrie Heart, coordinator for violence prevention and response, and English professor Michelle Trim.
“What is darkness?” Trim asked the large audience assembled in the center of the Academic Pavilion. “The concept of darkness creates a space for bad things to happen. By talking about issues (of sexual assault and violence), we shed light on the darkness. Every survivor has the power to break the silence.”
Students and faculty then paraded with a purpose, holding signs with anti-violence slogans and chanting as they marched.
“This is an issue near and dear to my heart,” said senior Julie Anderson, who has worked for two and a half years at Family Abuse Services in Burlington. “I also came to support (my sorority sister) who is a survivor of sexual assault.”
Her sorority sister walked beside her, as did other survivors. After being assaulted at a party last year, sophomore Hannah Knoblauch joined the march to show support to others who suffered similar experiences.
The long line of anti-violence advocates filed into Whitley Auditorium after completing the route, and anyone who had experienced sexual or domestic violence directly or indirectly was invited to share their stories.
At first, the auditorium was silent. Then one woman volunteered to speak. Then another. During the course of the night, more than 30 female and male students conveyed their experiences of being raped, assaulted, violated or otherwise disrespected by members of the same and/or opposite sex.
“I encourage everyone to speak up,” said Knoblauch, after describing her assault. “It was really hard for me to do, but I’m glad I did it.”
Tears were shed, hands were held and hugs were freely volunteered.
“It was amazing to me to see how many people shared stories, people that I recognized,” said Julia Denick, a SPARKS peer educator on campus. “It was so moving.”
The number of experiences shared at the event proved that interpersonal violence is more common than some students recognize, Heart said.
“I hope students came away with a general sense of support and awareness,” she said. “There are a number of formal and informal resources on campus that deal with these kinds of issues.”