In her keynote speech at the “Take Back the Night” event on Friday night, Jaclyn Friedman — a feminist performer, author and activist who was raped in college — called on the audience to create a culture and community “where it’s outrageous to think that someone would commit sexual violence against another member of the community.”
Roughly 100 students and faculty came together on the Frist South Lawn for the event, sponsored by Sexual Harrassment/Assault Advising, Resources, and Education, to raise awareness about sexual violence and assault and express solidarity for survivors of such incidents.
At Wesleyan University, Friedman was a student manager of the wrestling team. After a tournament one night, she was sexually assaulted by a team member who followed her back to her hotel room after both had been drinking heavily. He first took care of her as she vomited, then assaulted her.
Friedman used her experience to call upon University administrators and students to take sexual violence as a serious issue that must be actively addressed.
Also at this year’s event, three women who have suffered abuse shared their personal stories with audience members. In previous years, SHARE members had read anonymous accounts from survivors.
Christa Pehl GS was attacked by a man while taking an evening walk last September.
“I wish I felt comfort from others after the assault, but instead I received more blank stares and blame than hugs,” Pehl said to the audience. “What hurt the most … was my voice not being heard.”
But Pehl said her experience helped her to “find my voice.” She said that she does not apologize as frequently as she used to and denounced the idea that women should avoid walking alone at night, saying that assaulters — not those who are assaulted — are at fault.
“When we stop accepting violence against women as natural and [as] a given, and thus something a woman is responsible to prevent ... I know the world will change,” Pehl said.
SHARE co-president Katie Rodriguez ’11 said she joined SHARE after she began to emerge from a dark period of her life. She was raped in the hallway of her dorm by an upperclassman who walked her home from an eating club.
"I think it's important when we have an event like Take Back the Night that we take time to reflect on survivors' stories and journeys, focus on the present healing and solidarity by having performances, and look toward the future by discussing how change can come about, and how we can help in that move to change," Rodriguez said in an e-mail after the event.
President Shirley Tilghman and Vice President for Student Life Janet Dickerson also spoke at the event.
Tilghman, who was applauded by Friedman for her remarks, noted that even in the University’s small, intimate community setting, “there are occasions of sexual violence, of rape and of relationship violence that simply are unacceptable to the sense of who we are as a community.”
“We are a university community that prides itself in taking care of one another,” she added.
Former USG president Connor Diemand-Yauman ’10, who hosted the event with Rodriguez and SHARE co-president Avital Ludomirsky ’11, echoed Tilghman’s sentiments.
“We belong to a powerful, collective identity, and any time a member of our community is physically, psychologically or sexually exploited, we have an obligation to rally together and show that we will not tolerate [the behavior],” Diemand-Yauman said at the event.
Lillian Li ’13 praised the event for introducing a new perspective on sexual assault and for addressing a pressing issue.
“The event was very eye-opening, and it made me think about sexual assault in a way I hadn’t before,” Li said. “It’s important to have events like [“Take Back the Night”] because it forces people to think about and discuss an issue that is so often swept under the rug.”
Diemand-Yauman was similarly “touched by the survivor accounts, motivated by [Friedman] and encouraged by how enthusiastically students rallied behind the cause,” he said in an e-mail.
“Sexual violence affects the entire Princeton community and should therefore be addressed as collectively and aggressively as possible,” he said.
“Take Back the Night” first took place in Brussels, Belgium, in 1976 and is now held across the world and in all 50 states. Princeton has held the event annually since the 1980s.
Correction: A previous version of this article stated that Jaclyn Friedman attended Wesleyan College when, in fact, she attended Wesleyan University.
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