SC State students, employees don denim for sexual assault awareness

ORANGEBURG, S.C. – Denim often is a fashion choice for college students, but it was especially visible on the South Carolina State University campus on Wednesday, April 24.

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and SC State’s Counseling and Self-Development Center was proud to participate in Denim Day 2024 to raise awareness by encouraging students, faculty and staff members to wear denim.

Denim Day is a campaign that originated to raise awareness about sexual violence and support survivors. It was developed by Peace Over Violence in response to an Italian Supreme Court ruling that overturned a rape conviction, implying consent based on the victim’s jeans.

As the longest running sexual violence prevention and education campaign in history, Denim Day asks community members, elected officials, businesses and students to make a social statement with their fashion statement by wearing jeans on this day as a visible means of protest against the misconceptions that surround sexual violence.

The event was part of the Spring 2024 Mental Health Awareness Week on the SC State campus. Each day was dedicated to psychoeducation events, including a mental health and wellness fair, art therapy, and a mental health discussion for male students. 

For more information about the SC State’s Counseling & Self-Development Center’s services and programs, visit the center’s page on university’s website at www.scsu.edu  or email Director Christian Jackson at sjacks51@scsu.edu.