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Denim Day 2023: Date, History, Facts about sexual assault

On Denim Day, which occurs on the last Wednesday of April (April 26 this year), we stand in solidarity with survivors and victims of sexual assault. Denim Day, observed annually on the last Wednesday of April, began as a campaign against sexual assault apologists. In Italy, an 18-year-old girl was assaulted by her 45-year-old driving instructor during the summer of 1998. The court overturned the perpetrator’s sentence a year later, resulting in his parole. He argued that he had ‘consensual’ intercourse with the girl because she was wearing tight jeans that could only have been removed with her assistance. The following day, Italian women wore denim to work as a form of protest against the absurdity of the overturned sentence.

The background of Denim Day

Denim Day was first observed in 1999, when an Italian court overturned the conviction of a convicted rapist after granting his appeal. Italian women showed up to work in denim jeans and other clothing items, sparking outrage and protests around the globe. The Californian Senate and Assembly also supported their fellow human beings, and as a sign of respect, American women wore denim when they entered the Parliament. Patricia Giggans, an American feminist and the former executive director of Los Angeles’ Commission on Assaults Against Women (now Peace Over Violence), was inspired by these occurrences and dubbed the last Wednesday of April Denim Day.

The 18-year-old girl who was assaulted in 1992 began her day normally when her driving instructor picked her up. However, the situation quickly deteriorated when he violated her. Before dropping her off at her residence, the rapist threatened to murder her if she told anyone. Later that day, she told her parents about the occurrence, and the rapist was shortly apprehended and prosecuted. However, he appealed his case a year later and was released after the court concurred with his claim that the victim’s tight jeans could not have been removed without her assistance.

Sexual violence is traumatic. Because it is difficult to discuss, sexual assault perpetrators frequently escape punishment. Moreover, survivors and victims are frequently held responsible for the incident. Such attitudes have also resulted in lenient laws that provide little assistance to survivors and victims. Thus, the purpose of Denim Day is to purge the world of such attitudes and laws in order to bring true justice and support to the deserving.

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