By Claire Jenkins

Today, April 25th, Peace Over Violence has organized a Denim Day in honor of Sexual Violence Awareness Month. This campaign was ignited by a ruling made in a Supreme Court in Italy, 1999. This ruling, known to Italian lawmakers as “denim defense” or “jeans alibi,” suggested that a woman cannot be raped if she is wearing jeans due to the idea that “they are impossible to remove unless she helps,” which, in the eyes of the court, suggests consent. This ruling brought on an even angrier debate about how judges (and societies) should view sexual assault and rape.    

The third division of the Supreme Court of Appeals in Rome released a statement from a November ruling that overturned a 34-month sentence for rape in Italy. They stated that ”jeans cannot be removed easily and certainly it is impossible to pull them off if the victim is fighting against her attacker with all her force.” This suggests that the victim was not fighting hard enough and takes the attention away from the wrongdoings of the attacker. This is known as victim-shaming. It is the same type of thought process as “Well, what was she wearing?” or “Her skirt was too short.” This type of mindset is dangerous.

After this ruling, women lawmakers across Italy showed their support for this victim and their resentment towards this ruling by going on a “jeans strike.” They said they will wear jeans to Parliament until the decision is changed. On April 25th we carry on this “jeans strike,” and the students of Palm Valley wear jeans after donating one dollar to Peace Over Violence. Students also signed a pair of jeans in solidarity with victims of sexual assault around the world.

25th of April: We wear jeans to show our support.

Editor: Bella Bier