On Saturday, I facilitated a sexual assault awareness workshop with participants of the "SlutWalk" rally. "SlutWalk" is a recent movement protesting sexual assault, aimed particularly at changing the victim-blaming culture that surrounds sexual assault. The initial "SlutWalk" rally took place in Toronto, after a local police officer stated that "women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized." The rally drew a crowd of over 3,000 protesters, inspiring others to organize "SlutWalk" events in other cities.
The workshop that I facilitated took place after the march itself, and was part of a series of other workshops and presentations. The primary activity that I did with the participants was engage them in the activity of "Agree, Disagree, Unsure" which involved me reading a statement, and then asking people whether they agree, disagree, or are unsure of the statements validity, and to explain why they feel the way that they do. The participants were extremely passionate about the statements that I read, and were very eager to share their views. Since the participants were all activists, dissenting opinions were rare, yet that did not prevent the group from having thoughtful discussions. All in all it was a tremendous experience, as it feels great to raise awareness regarding the important issue of sexual assault.
No comments:
Post a Comment