“The City of Palmdale is proud to support causes like this that have positive impact on people’s lives,” stated Palmdale’s Human Resources Manager Patricia Nevarez. “We support and participate in events such as Daffodil Days, the AV Heartwalk, Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, as well as hosting blood drives to help raise awareness about important issues.”
For the past 18 years, Peace Over Violence has run its Denim Day campaign on a Wednesday in April in honor of Sexual Violence Awareness Month. The campaign was originally triggered by a ruling by the Italian Supreme Court where a rape conviction was overturned because the justices felt that since the victim was wearing tight jeans she must have helped her rapist remove her jeans, thereby implying consent.
The following day, the women in the Italian Parliament came to work wearing jeans in solidarity with the victim. Peace Over Violence developed the Denim Day campaign in response to this case and the activism surrounding it. Since then, wearing jeans on Denim Day has become a symbol of protest against erroneous and destructive attitudes about sexual assault. In this rape prevention education campaign we ask community members, elected officials, businesses and students to make a social statement with their fashion by wearing jeans on this day as a visible means of protest against the misconceptions that surround sexual assault.
[Information via press release from the city of Palmdale.]
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