In recognition of the 500,000 women and men who experience sexual assault and 60,000 children who are sexually abused in the U.S. each year, April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
April 30th is national Denim Day, established in 1999 after the rape conviction of an Italian driving instructor was overturned. The Italian Supreme Court had argued that because the 18-year-old victim was wearing tight jeans, she must have helped remove them, indicating that the sex was consensual. Outraged, women in the Italian Parliament protested the decision by wearing jeans on the steps of the Supreme Court. The California Senate and Assembly sympathized by holding a similar protest on the steps of the state capitol. Each year since then rape crisis centers encourage everyone to wear jeans on April 30 to protest the many myths that blame survivors of rape.
In 2016 a man accused of rape by 26 women, and shown on camera bragging about sexually abusing women, was elected President of the United States. In 2023 he was convicted of sexual abuse, but was re-elected president in 2024. Since assuming the role, he instructed the Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women to remove information about funding opportunities from its website, leaving rape crisis nonprofits that serve thousands of women across the country vulnerable to major cuts in funding and services. A judge has issued a temporary restraining order to help maintain local sexual assault prevention and care services, although this order may be overturned in the future. You can help maintain these essential services by letting your federal, state, and local representatives know you support the Violence Against Women program, and by donating what you can to local agencies.
Each year, Santa Barbara’s nonprofit Standing Together to End Sexual Assault (STESA) educates more than 5,000 area residents, including 3,800 youth, about sexual assault and prevention, provides counseling and advocacy to more than 300 survivors of assault, and trains more than 200 law enforcement, health-care, and social service professionals. The STESA hotline provides 24-hour assistance at (805) 564-3696. STESA is recognizing Sexual Assault Awareness Month with many activities this year, including a “Denim Party” at the Wildcat Lounge on Thursday, April 10. For more information, contact the agency at sbstesa.org or (805) 963-3862.
Scott McCann, PhD, LCSW taught human sexuality at SBCC and Antioch University for 20 years and is currently a member of STESA’s board of directors.
