Christina Lépine — Features Editor

“Let’s empower more people to scream and raise their voices” said Anika Malone, co-founder of Bishop’s Sexual Culture Committee during the forum. 

On Oct. 19 between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. the Take Back the Night Forum took place in Cleghorn to offer the opportunity to all in-person and online participants to discuss questions surrounding sexual violence.

The co-hosts of the event, Bishop’s students Georgia LaPierre, Karen Halliday, and Amie Godward, started by listing  multiple organizations and hotlines available for all victims of sexual violence and all people wanting to discuss the topic. They followed by introducing the few guests of the evening, who added to the forum by sharing testimonies, insights, support, and resources.

The forum was conducted in a friendly and inclusive ambiance. All participants sat in small groups of around two to six people to discuss topics and issues before summarizing their discussions to the general audience.

To encourage collaboration and discussion, the Sexual Culture Committee created a safe space in which participants with different backgrounds could discuss uncomfortable questions and topics. For the committee, it is now important to normalize that having uncomfortable discussions is a good way to create changes in mindsets and ideologies. To facilitate the creation of conversations, the committee provided a list of questions on several subjects to participants. The attendees had a few minutes to discuss in small groups before sharing their thoughts with the rest of the group. The co-hosts encouraged all participants to be very respectful while answering questions and talking. One method the hosts suggested was to replace “no but” with “yes and” to make sure no comment or testimony was discredited and that participants feel comfortable. 

Although the forum had the goal of creating inclusive discussions and hearing more people’s intake on the topic, the co-hosts and founders of the Sexual Culture Committee also wanted to learn more about ways to improve sexual violence reporting techniques, as well as finding ways to make sure Bishop’s students are aware of the resources available to them in the case of sexual violence or other issues regarding mental health.

To close this event, the co-hosts mentioned that it is possible for everyone to find information regarding sexual violence, mental health, and the reporting of any event that might them feel uncomfortable. All resources are listed on the Bishop’s website in the “View all resources” section including the REES website (Respect, Educate, Empower Survivors) or at https://reescommunity.com/campus to report acts of sexual violence. Online reporting systems offer more privacy to the person filing the report.

The Silent Vigil for Survivors took place on Nov. 3 at Optimist Park, and Take Back the Night took place on Nov. 10. 

For more information about the Bishop’s Sexual Culture Committee, everything is posted on their Instagram @busexualculturecommittee. A pamphlet including more resources is also available on their Instagram account.