“I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept” -Dr. Angela Davis (Activist) Hi I’m Meghan McKenzie, a Junior at Cornell University, and I’m beyond excited to serve as the Take Back the Night Intern this year. When thinking about what I wanted to say to introduce myself and explain “Why I Take Back the Night”, Davis’ timeless quote immediately came to mind. I think it’s the unapologetic anger in her words, the urgency she feels in the moment, and her belief in herself (that she, herself possesses the power to change what she cannot accept) that really speak to me. These feelings she expressed reflect what I, and what survivors and allies nationwide are feeling during this time in history. Why do I Take Back the Night? I Take Back the Night because I cannot accept that one in five women will be sexually assaulted during her lifetime. I cannot accept that one in four adult women and one in six adult men reported reported that they were sexually abused as children. I cannot accept that 43.3% of heterosexual women, 40.2% of gay men and 50% of transgender people have experienced sexual violence within their lifetime. I cannot accept that one in three women and one in four men have been victims of physical intimate partner violence. My passions and background: I first realized my passion for ending violence against women in high school. We were learning about "bride burning", and I remember feeling physically hot with anger and disgust that this could be real, that someone was capable of doing this to another person. As I sat in class, burning up with rage, it was the first time in my life that I realized what I was passionate about and what I would dedicate my life to. At Cornell, this general passion for human rights became more refined to fighting sexual violence after participating in an Alternative Spring Break trip in NYC. There I learned about the issue of commercial sexual exploitation of children and spent time with survivors who had experienced this. I continued serving as an activist for CSEC survivors and educating the Cornell community about this issue through the club Students Against Sexual Solicitation of Youth (SASSY). Later I began working to mitigate issues of sexual assault on campus, presenting workshops to educate students about how to support a friend who has experienced an assault. These experiences led me to email the Ithaca Advocacy Center about how to get involved and my serendipitous discovery of this internship for planning Take Back the Night. What is Take Back the Night? Take Back the Night is an annual, world-wide march and rally to speak out against sexual assault and intimate partner violence and for women to reclaim the right to feel safe while walking alone at night. It is an inclusive, intersectional event meant to give survivors a platform to express their voice and come together with allies in the fight against sexual violence. To me Take Back the Night means standing up for what is right and speaking out against injustice. It means embracing and supporting survivors, and allowing them to speak when they have been silenced for so long. It means demanding justice and not tolerating apathy. It means coming together in solidarity, and changing what we cannot accept. This year our theme is Justice for me too. This theme represents community and unity for survivors, but also focuses on healing for the individual and recognizing that justice means something different for each person. Take Back the Night will be held on Friday April 27th, 2018. If you want to get involved please email us at [email protected].
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