Women’s Resource Center Holds Take Back the Night Event at UA

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Alabama Women’s Resource Center is hosting the Take Back the Night March and Rally Tuesday, April 20, at 6 p.m. at the Crimson Promenade.

The event, held around the world, is an effort to support the end of violence against women. The rally will include speakers, stories, poetry and music.

In addition to the WRC, the event is sponsored by Verizon Wireless, Pepsi, Alabama Panhellenic Association, Alpha Chi Omega, Judicial Affairs and the department of race and gender studies.

“We are proud to work with the Women’s Resource Center to bring about awareness of abuse on campus and throughout Alabama,” said Caran Smith, Verizon Wireless public relations manager for the Alabama/Georgia Region. “Verizon Wireless is working to stop the cycle of violence in our communities, and Take Back the Night provides a proactive approach to helping those affected by domestic violence and sexual assault.”

Take Back the Night is an international march and rally that is organized in local communities with the purpose of unifying communities to take a stand against violence against women. The Take Back the Night rally began in Europe in 1976, when the women attending the international Tribuna on Crimes Against Women marched together in solidarity, lighting candles to protest the ways in which violence affects the lives of women worldwide.  The first Take Back the Night rally occurred in the U.S. in 1978 in San Francisco and has spread to communities across the nation. UA has been hosting the event since 1986 involving both the campus and community.

For more information about the Take Back the Night event, contact Maria Perez-Fisher at 205/348-5040 or mvpfisher@sa.ua.edu.

The UA Women’s Resource Center provides outreach, services and advocacy to empower women and encourage their active and equal participation in the University and community. For more information, go to http://wrc.ua.edu