Last week Monday I attended Take Back the Night, which was co-sponsored by Student Involvement, Student Activities, and Counseling Services. If you don’t know, Take Back the Night is an event that takes place all over the world to inform people about sexual violence towards women. It promotes safe environments where women do not have to worry about walking alone or at night. I was not sure what to expect, but I found that it was a very moving program - and I was really impressed by the turn-out.

The event began in the Lecture Hall, where a Medaille graduate and survivor of sexual abuse shared her story with the audience. Then we traveled outside (it was a beautiful night!) and lit candles, taking a symbolic walk around the quad to “take back the night.” I think it is great that we have events like this on campus, and I think it is even more impressive that students take advantage of them - particularly in this case, guys. There was a much higher number of guys in the crowd than I would have expected, and I think that is great to see.

I give the speaker so much credit for being able to stand in front of a crowd and talk about her experiences. She displayed a lot of courage in doing so. As I listened to her story I found it hard not to think about what I would have done or who I would have been if I were in that situation. She has turned into a truly beautiful person who has used her past to create a future for herself - in helping children, specifically abused children and children in special education. It gives me hope to see that good things can come out of terrible occurences.