During TBTN, we celebrate and commemorate those people who constantly surprise us with their resilience; we protest rape and other types of interpersonal violence; and we stand in spite of those who abuse power and try to make us live in fear of the night.

TBTN is about we celebrating everyday activism: the radical notion that everyone can play a part in ending violence and oppression by resisting rape culture, supporting survivors, and challenging our institution. That night, we reinforce  the idea that believing survivors is a type of radical everyday activism, and we feel like this needs to be done since we live in a society that suggests that we do completely the opposite. That night, to every survivor present physically or in spirit, we want to say: we. believe. you.

So join us for a night, not of protest, but of support, as we march through campus stopping only to listen to the stories of our campus survivors, allies, and friends. We will laugh, shout, cry, shout some more, and believe in a better world for all of us to live safely together. Join us for a night of parading strength, dignity, and neighborly love. Join us for a night of empathetic listening to stories too often covered up. Join us, please, in Take Back the Night to be hosted by STEP on Tuesday, April 17, at 7pm. We will start in Martha Miller Rotunda and march around campus from there.

Our voices have power. And we are here to take back the night.