The rape culture and sexual assault conversation was confronted once again on Sunday, Sept. 18 at the human rights monument, where about 200 people attended SlutWalk in the heart of downtown Ottawa.
This year was the sixth annual Ottawa SlutWalk, an event that aims to shed light on rape culture and sexual assault. SlutWalk began as a response to a Toronto constable who said “women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized.”
Protesters gathered at the monument to hear from event speakers who shared their personal experiences of sexual assault, and described why the event was important to them. The protestors then marched down human rights monument and toward Parliament Hill.
This year’s event was organized by Kate Forman, a third-year Carleton University social work student, in collaboration with advocates of increased on-campus resources for victims of sexual assault.
Forman said the protest’s organizers launched a social media campaign leading up to the event, titled “#INeedSlutWalkBecause,” which allow “all folks to share their experiences with slut shaming, rape culture, and sexual violence.”
#INeedSlutWalkBecause it gives me the chance to tell my story in a safe place.
— Sydney Elizabeth (@sydner15) August 18, 2016
“I mean, the truth is [sexual violence] does happen everywhere and it’s nothing we can kind of shove under the rug,” Forman said. “Everyone has to recognize that we are responsible for this and we need to recognize it as a huge issue . . . it’s important that Carleton takes accountability for that.”
Students and policy makers at Carleton have been debating on whether to include the term “rape culture” in the school’s sexual assault policy, which is currently being created by the university in consultation with students.
Leila Moumouni-Tchouassi, a University of Ottawa student and one of the event speakers, spoke about the recent re-instatement of the men’s hockey team at the university, after two of its players were charged for sexual assault in 2014.
“The rape culture [on campus] is definitely very real, and it’s not addressed properly . . . having these conversations continuously, and making sure these things are continuously being forced to be addressed is very important,” Moumouni-Tchouassi said.
In the months leading up to the SlutWalk, stories about sexual assaults on university campuses across North America spread across the media, including that of Brock Turner, who sexually assaulted an unconscious woman behind a Stanford University fraternity house.
#INeedSlutwalkBecause NO should have been enough to stop him (his response: “don’t you dare say no to me”).
— Fiona R. Smith (@FionaRebekah) September 15, 2016
“They’re big issues in the media right now, and I think if that’s drawing people out to support this issue, then that’s really positive,” Forman said.
Forman added it was important to make the event more inclusive this year compared to previous years, and that in past years, the SlutWalk has been exclusionary to women of colour, women with disabilities, and trans women.
Some of the speakers included Debbie Owusu-Akyeeah, president of the Carleton Graduate Students’ Association and a Ghanaian woman, Ibtehaj Shahid, an immigrant from Pakistan and a Carleton graduate, and Alicia-Marie LeJour, an Indigenous, Métis, and Jamaican woman who is a survivor of sexual violence.
As the SlutWalk wrapped up, Forman said they were inspired and overjoyed with all the support of the participants, and what the future may hold for conversation on SlutWalks across Canada.
“I think we’re always going to need a SlutWalk,” they said. “Until violence against women is completely eradicated . . . we’ve got a long way to go.”
#ineedslutwalkbecause what I wear shouldnt be taken as consent.… https://t.co/QLmXdIJV10
— Meagan Tapia (@Tokee420) September 19, 2016
