Take Back the Night event advocates for cultural change to end sexual violence
Apr. 12—BEMIDJI — Supporting survivors of sexual violence doesn't stop with believing them.
Participants and speakers during this year's Take Back the Night event at Bemidji State University called for a change in the norms that perpetuate sexual violence and place shame and guilt on those who have experienced it.
The annual event, which began with a march from Paul Bunyan Park to the BSU campus Thursday evening, brought together students, community members and local organizations all with the purpose of bringing an end to sexual violence.
"This is an important issue for our campus and our community," shared BSU President John Hoffman in his opening remarks. "It's an issue that's changed lives forever."
As a partnership between BSU and
Support Within Reach,
an organization that provides resources for those who've experienced sexual violence, the event was designed to create a safe and supportive environment to share and connect with others.
This year it also challenged those present to imagine a world free of violence and what it might take to reach that dream.
"The idea of ending violence or living in a society free of violence can feel like a fantasy," shared Sarah Borgen, an advocate at Support Within Reach and guest speaker for the event. "We must muster the courage to look at this (problem) without feeling deflated or discouraged."
In Borgen's address, she gave an overview of how sexual violence has been discussed throughout history and how the experiences of women and other victims have been discounted.
She also challenged members of the audience to recognize how current societal norms can make it harder to recognize and stand up to sexual violence, starting with the general Midwestern aversion to conflict.
"We have developed a culture that renders abuses invisible in our own desire to escape confrontation," Borgen said. "Our discomfort can tell us more about ourselves, our values. Discomfort is our friend."
Borgen encouraged those present to not shy away from the discomfort around the topic of sexual violence and to normalize discussions on the issue so that it can become easier to recognize.
"You can't resist what you can't see, so the first act of resistance is to notice," she explained.
While it might seem like recognizing violence would be simple, Borgen argued that because so many signs of abuse have been normalized many fly under the radar.
"So much of what we take for granted as normal needs to be questioned," she said.
Borgen also advocated for sexual violence to be viewed as a community problem that requires everyone to be a part of the solution.
"I understand we want to look away, we want to pretend this problem doesn't exist," she said, "but it can never work without coming together as a community to challenge the cultural norms that perpetuate violence."
Beyond working to recognize violence when it's taking place, resistance can also include working to foster healthy communication, relationships and environments, providing support to survivors and standing up to perpetrators and perpetrators of violence.
"We are here to support each other and everyone who has experienced violence," Borgen said. "We have a monumental task ahead of us, to offer a different vision of the status quo."
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence, advocates are available to help. Reach out to Support Within Reach 24/7 at
(800) 708-2727
in Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard and Cass, or
(866) 747-5008
in Itasca and Aitkin Counties.
For more information about Support Within Reach, visit
