Sun Devils Against Sexual Assault hosted a virtual event last night to honor survivors of sexual violence by allowing people to express themselves on a Zoom call.
The Zoom call consisted of protest signs made by students and advocates who shared their stories. The rape stories of Laury Smith and Fiona Yu, who was murdered during her assault.
After sharing these stories, a member of SDASA made a statement: “We are not the first to scream from our belly’s for justice, for better services and resources, for the university to address and dismantle its rape culture. Until Arizona State University does, we will not be the last. I scream because Laury Smith did for me in 1995.”
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The leaders of SDASA hope ASU builds the CAARE Center and plan to put Fiona Yu’s name on it in remembrance. There were many other stories told and after each story affirmations were given “We hear you, we stand with you, we believe you.” The open mic supported everyone who shared a story and also the people who appeared to listen to their cries.
“The goal of SDASA’s virtual protest is to raise awareness about issues of rape culture at ASU, specifically Alayna’s horrific experience reporting to ASU PD and the ASU administration’s refusal to improve rape crisis services despite the rape crisis center proposal we shared with administrators last month,” according to the SDASA.
SDASA announced a Twitter Thunderclap protest in solidarity with the University of Survivors Movement (WeAreUSM) yesterday afternoon as well. Many tweets demanded a CAARE Center for sexual assault victims and questioned why ASU or President Crow is not complying with students’ requests. Tweets also demanded justice for Alayna, a survivor that recently spoke up about her assault.
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The support group, Sun Devils Against Sexual Assault, SDASA, formed in 2013 when a student felt silenced after reporting sexual harassment and noticed other students were enduring similar trauma across ASU campus.
SDASA was created as an advocacy and support group that is not affiliated with the university. One main goal of this group was to connect ASU to the national college anti-rape movement that was forming around the Department of Education’s lack of Title IX enforcement.
SDASA is open to any survivors who would like to share their stories anonymously via email, direct message or by an anonymous form. Students are also welcome to join SDASA and stay updated on campaigns or get more involved.
Correction: A name has been removed from the story to protect the identity of the source.
Contact the reporter at amunoz68@asu.edu.
