UMM Sexual Assault Awareness Events
The University of Maine at Machias will hold two events for April’s Sexual Assault Awareness month. In partnership with Atlantic Mental Health Center’s Sexual Assault Services, and the Next Step Domestic Violence Project, the university is hosting a Take Back the Night March and Rally and a display of the Clothesline Project.
The Take Back the Night March and Rally will take place on Thursday, April 26th, starting at 6:00 at the Machias Chamber of Commerce (across from Helen’s Restaurant) and will continue to the University of Maine at Machias, Performing Arts Center for a rally and speakout. The program will conclude with a candlelight vigil. This event is open to the public. Shuttle vans will be available to transport those who do not wish to walk back to their vehicles at the end of the program.
The Clothesline Project will be displayed in the Merrill Library, at the University of Maine at Machias, from Monday, April 9th– Monday, April 30th.
Take Back the Night events were created in the 1970’s as a way for women to publicly express their anger about sexual and other kinds of violence.
The Clothesline Project is a visual display that bears witness to the violence against people who have been sexually abused. During the public display, a clothesline is hung with shirts, each decorated by survivor or someone who cares about a victim to represent a particular person’s experience.