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The Michigan Review
| Headline | 22 April 1998 |
Take Back The Night Marches in Ann Arbor
by Josh Benninghoff
The night of Saturday, April 18th was not about any social issue; it was about women, for better or for worse. Shortly after 7:00 p.m., student activist Brenna DeVaney's introductions commenced the Nineteenth Annual "Take Back the Night" march and rally. Although the Ann Arbor Coalition Against Rape (AACAR) organized this event in just over a month, popular support for this event was apparent in the crowd gathered on the Diag. Some came expecting TBTN to specifically address sexual violence, including rape; but the purpose of TBTN, as stated in their literature distributed at the rally, is to make the following proclamation for women: "we will be safe, we will be strong and we will be free. The TBTN March is a symbol of our collective commitment that there will come a day where women and children will no longer need to fear male violence."
After various announcements, including By Any Means Necessary (BAMN) leader Jessice Curtin's plea for the support of affirmative action, the first of three "entertainment" segments began. Detroit Police Officer Kalimah Johnson and her poem "Rape" was a detailed account of how rape "bleeds a bloddy song into (her) ears." The emotion was apparent in her voice and demand that those that chose to lie on or near the Diag, "get up, stand up. Stand up for your rights."
The first speaker was Sexual Assault and Prevention Awareness Center (SAPAC) member Deborah Frankle. In a positive, emotional speech, Frankle stated, "If there is one thing that people should take with them, it should be the importance of support." U-M alumna Carolyn Hammond followed Frankle by explaining how seeing the night's protest made her "feel like a winner."
The second "entertainment" group, the Emily Barry Dance Company, performed an evocative dance to celebrate the education and healing involved in a survivor's life. Following the dance, AATU co-coordinator Melissa Dansforth began by asking that the crowd summon the powers of the elements and direction.
Rounding out the speakers was local activist Katie Mattingly. She claimed that "every woman I know is a survivor of violence against women." There exists a "continuum of violence in our rape culture," she said, citing statistics that claim that one in three women will be sexually assaulted before the age of eighteen.
Although she said that no man should ever be raped, she claimed the American "rape culture" doesn't acknowledge the severity of its rape statistics. This claim brought forth her overall slogan, that the "personal is political." She then proceeded to condemn TBTN for not addressing the racial issues that are inextricably intertwined with the feminist movement. she asked, "What use are a bunch of white women marching with police escorts?" After remarking how the "most useless thing in the world is a guilty man ... Guilt makes people turn inward. Let's not talk about you. Let's talk about violence against women," she soon concluded by saying, "I need you all. I can't end violence against women."
After her speech, she left the stage and invited the members of the AACAR to take the stage to announce their demands.
The demands for this year included, among others:
As stated in their brochures, TBTN "seek(s) to expose the political function of rape in our society - that is, keeping women terrorized and under the control of men." After the final demand was read, men were thanked for their support, but asked not to attend the ensuing march. The women then left for and hour-long march that included parts of campus, as well as downtown Ann Arbor before returning to the Diag for a candlelight vigil. When asked why men were not invited to participate in the march, DeVaney explained that "Tonight is only about women. That doesn't mean that men can't be a part of the solution or be there for support, but the point of tonight is for women to feel power and know they don't need anyone to escort or protect them." MR
This article was published in the 22 April 1998 edition of The Michigan Review
(Volume 16, Number 10).
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