More than 100 people gathered in Witherspoon Student Center Thursday to raise awareness for and speak out against sexual violence at NC State’s Take Back the Night event as part of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. 

The march portion of the event was cancelled due to inclement weather. The speaker portion of the event was moved from outside on the Stafford Commons to the Witherspoon Student Center. 

This year’s event marked Take Back the Night’s 28th year at NC State. 

“Take Back the Night has been around since 1975, and over the years it’s evolved into an event to empower victims of sexual assault and to empower people who are more likely to be victims of sexual assault,” said Carson Shepherd, NC State’s “It’s on Us” coordinator and a junior studying political science.

Speakers at the event included Carson Shepherd, the It’s On Us coordinator; Khari Cyrus, student body president; Justine Hollingshead, chief of staff for the vice chancellor and dean of the division of academic and student affairs; Joanne Woodard, vice provost for Institutional Equity & Diversity Office; Renee Wells, the director of the GLBT Center, and several others.  

“It’s a rally to empower victims,” Shepherd said. “It’s like a positive empowerment of students on this campus who have been affected by sexual assault and want to do something about it.”

Peer educators were also present and spoke to the crowd about different opportunities for survivor support and bystander training.

Attendees also heard survivors tell their own personal stories about sexual violence. Survivors were asked to get on stage and tell their stories in front of the group in an effort to demonstrate courage and let students know they are not alone.

“Everyone spoke about their personal experiences with sexual assault and their experiences with dealing with it on college campuses, NC State in particular, and just talking about the importance of making campus a safe place for everyone,” Shepherd said.

The Women’s Center also advertised its Clothesline Project at the march. The Clothesline Project is an initiative designed to provide survivors with a way to tell their story by designing and painting their own T-shirt. Each T-shirt was meant to portray a different meaning, offering different situations people at NC State have been through in an effort to bring the issue closer to campus.