Ohio University's Women’s Center is hosting its annual Take Back The Night, an awareness event for survivors of sexual and domestic violence, in the Athena Cinema on April 6 at 6:30 p.m.
The event was first held in 2007, Chris Fowler, the director of the Women’s Center, said.
OU’s undergraduate Student Senate collaborates with the Women’s Center to plan Take Back The Night and funds a portion of its costs.
“(Funding for Take Back The Night) is part of our budget, but also we received funding from undergraduate Student Senate as well,” Fowler said.
Megan Handle, a junior studying social work, is the women’s affairs commissioner for the undergraduate Student Senate.
“(Take Back the Night) is an event to bring awareness to the stories of survivors, raise awareness for the issue, show that we as a campus support survivors and have spaces for them to talk and share their stories,” Handle said.
Handle was also involved in Take Back the Night during its virtual meeting amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Last year was the first year since COVID we had it, so it was my first year being on the committee and also going to the events,” Handle said.
Handle also said she is expecting both members of the university and the Athens community to come to the event and said she hopes to have higher attendance than last year’s Take Back the Night.
“I really hope that we have an even bigger turnout than last year because last year was our first in-person year after COVID,” Handle said. “I'm hoping people feel more comfortable to come in person and immerse themselves in the experience.”
Contributions in the form of survivor advocates also come from OU’s Survivor Advocacy Program, or SAP. Kaitlyn Urbaniak, a survivor advocate within SAP, is on the planning committee for Take Back The Night.
Advocates will be wearing purple shirts to be easily spotted by members of the crowd. Throughout the event, advocates will be providing support to survivors as they participate in the march, Urbaniak said.
Urbaniak has been in an advocate position since July and expects support from the Athens community for her first Take Back the Night.
“I'm expecting the Athens community and the campus community to come together to actively work towards stopping violence and stopping the silence,” Urbaniak said.
This year the keystone speaker is going to be Jayvon Howard, a male survivor and advocate, because of his work’s focus on the male survivor experience. Howard is currently the engaging men coordinator with the Ohio Alliance to End Sexual Violence.
“One of the things we always like to take into account on the planning committee is trying to be as intersectional as possible,” Handle said. “We want as many different identities, so everyone feels welcome.”
Having a speaker talk about the male survivor experience is rare for Take Back the Night, which Fowler said she is excited to see this year.
“I'm excited about this event having a speaker who will give voice and talk through the male-perspective lens, which I don't know that we have in the past,” Fowler said.
Urbaniak said she wants participants of Take Back the Night to support and encourage survivors to tell their stories more, and for survivors to take comfort in that support.
In the weeks following Take Back the Night, Counseling and Psychological Services doctoral students will hold mindfulness workshops in the Women’s Center, located in Baker University Center. The workshops will offer safe spaces for people to talk about the feelings that Take Back the Night brings up, Handle said.
“I feel like it's hard to talk about an issue you don't know a lot about, but not only do you get to hear other survivor stories here, but you get to learn about what sexual assault is, what resources are available. And someone you know might be going through the difficult process of reporting, and it's always good to know things to help your friends,” Handle said.
