Dear Colleagues,

Please join the GRC in showing support for Denim Day on Wednesday, April 24, 2019!

This year marks the 20th celebration of Denim Day, and the sixth year of bringing the initiative to Notre Dame.  For those of you who are not familiar with this event, Denim Day is an annual campaign focused on raising awareness about sexual violence.  The event was initiated after an Italian High Court overturned a rape conviction because they felt since the victim was wearing tight jeans, she must have helped her rapist remove her jeans, thereby implying consent.  The following day, the women in the Italian Parliament came to work wearing jeans in solidarity with the victim. Since then, wearing jeans on Denim Day has become a symbol of protest against erroneous and destructive attitudes about sexual assault.

Showing support for Denim Day couldn’t be easier. Simply wear jeans on Wednesday, April 24, and we will provide a sticker for you to wear that indicates your denim is making a statement, as well as a pledge card for you to sign and return for display.

Stickers and pledge forms will be available at the front desk of ESC and Grace Hall the morning of April 24.

Offices within Student Affairs have received special permission to wear denim on April 24. Participating in Denim Day provides a wonderful opportunity for the Notre Dame community to show solidarity with survivors of abuse around the country and to think about how we can work in our personal and professional lives to reduce violence in our communities. We would also ask that participating offices take a photo of your staff in jeans and share on Twitter with the hashtag #denimdaynd.

Please contact us with any questions about participation or Denim Day in general. If you would like to learn more about the international initiative, please visit denimdayusa.org.