If you work full-time for the Wisconsin National Guard or the state Department of Military Affairs, you might not be out of uniform if you wear blue jeans to the office tomorrow (April 25).
Maj. Gen. Don Dunbar, adjutant general of Wisconsin, has authorized Wisconsin National Guard personnel and Department of Military Affairs employees to wear jeans in support of Denim Day, an annual rape prevention education campaign.
“This observance provides us an opportunity to recommit our efforts to eliminate sexual assault in the Wisconsin National Guard and the Department of Military Affairs,” Dunbar said, “as well as providing an opportunity to commit our talent and resources toward changing any existing culture that permits or tolerates the crime of sexual assault.”
According to Sara Poquette, a sexual assault response coordinator (SARC) at Joint Force Headquarters in Madison, Denim Day originated in 1999 when an Italian appeals court overturned a rape conviction based on the belief that the victim’s denim jeans were too tight to be removed by her assailant without consent. Wearing denim on April 25, she explained, is a social statement recognizing the misconceptions regarding sexual assault.
During Sexual Assault Prevention Month, the Wisconsin National Guard’s Sexual Assault Prevention and Response office will provide information about military resources for service members who are sexually assaulted at public events such as “Take Back the Night” at the University of Wisconsin in Madison and at UW-Milwaukee.
What are some other ways you can think of that helps the Wisconsin National Guard reach out to increase awareness of the services it offers to sexual assault victims?
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, call Capt. Kristin Boustany at 1-608-469-2627 or the Department of Defense Safe Helpline at 1-877-995-5247.
