(Credit: Take Back The Night website)
With the COVID-19 pandemic putting a hold on Take Back The Night march, London organizations are banning together to revive the initiative.
Take Back The Night is an annual event that raises awareness on sexual assault and gender-based violence, with emphasis on survivors of this abuse. It strives to put an end to all forms of sexual violence, including rape, sexual harassment and sex trafficking.
“[T]he rate of police-reported sexual assault increased 38% between 2017 and 2022,” as stated in a report by Statistics Canada.
Several organizations have coordinated the march, including City of London, Queer Intersections, Changing Ways, Anova, the London Abused Women’s Centre, The Muslim Resource Centre, Western University, and Fanshawe College.
(Credit: Take Back The Night, XFM News 2022)
The march falls on Sept. 18 in Victoria Park downtown.
This event coincides with the first Consent Awareness Week in Canada, as instated by Bill 43 this year.
The bill aims to “foster a culture of safety and respect that ensures that everyone, especially young people, understands what consent means and how to practice it,” as stated in a reading from the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. It also says “[t]he consequences of not understanding and practicing consent are significant and far-reaching.”
Survivor testimonials, poetry and music, as well as support resources for attendees will take place alongside the march.
Recent events such as the Hockey Canada sexual assault trial at the London courthouse, where all five former Team Canada world junior players were freed of all charges, have made conversations surrounding consent and sexual violence more prevalent.
More information about the march can be found on Take Back The Night’s website.
