During the 1970’s, the violence against women upticked in Philadelphia, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Throughout the years, women were killed, depicted violently in the media and deprived of sufficient resources and safety. It wasn’t until 1976, when a Tribunal of activists from across the world met in Belgium to advocate for the safety of women on the street, that protests jump-started a national movement.  

Anne Pride was a National Organization of Women (NOW) activist who was dedicated to reproductive justice, ending sexual assault and domestic partner violence. She is known for setting the precedent for victim confidentiality during her time as the first director of Pittsburgh Action Against Rape (PAAR) after refusing to share notes from private counseling sessions. 

In 1977, Pride orchestrated and led a rally and memorial service for women’s rights in Pittsburgh, where she coined “Take Back the Night” during a speech. While it had emerged in previous protests, the phrase caught more attention and became the battle cry it is today. 

Today, “Take Back the Night” is an initiative recognized by communities and university campuses as a way to educate about how sexual assault happens and reclaim the spaces women are told aren’t safe. Sam Houston State University will honor this movement during its annual event sponsored by Victim Studies Professor Dr. Kathleen Ratajczak and her violence against women class.  

“Continuously having the event is important because sexual assault is continuously happening and it’s not going away,” said Ratajczak. “We can’t just wait for the next newsworthy thing in a decade to pop up to talk about it again.” 

The event is divided into three sections, the first being a rally. During the rally portion of the evening, students, staff and faculty have the opportunity to create posters with messages against sexual violence. In previous years, this moment also allowed people to design paper lanterns that were displayed in the Frank Parker Plaza in honor of survivors.  

Following the rally is a march. Dr. Ratajczak and her students lead participants around the SHSU campus, where they pause at different locations to share statistics, helpful resources and quotes from survivors and activists. 

The evening ends with a speak-out. It is an open-mic where anyone can come forward and share feelings, experiences of victimization and speak truth back into those spaces where they are often told they are not allowed to.  

“It’s kind of taking back our voices in places where we’ve been told that we can’t have a voice and raising awareness at the same time,” said Ratajczak. 

SHSU’s “Take Back the Night” will be held on April 16 from 6-8 p.m. in room 320 of the Lowman Student Center.  

Resources

• National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673 

• Huntsville and SHSU:  

• • SAAFE House 

• • • Location: 1426 Sam Houston Ave, Huntsville, TX 77340 

• • • 24/7 Crisis Hotline: 1-833-858-6265 

• • SHSU Title IX 

• • • Email: [email protected] 

• • • Phone: 936-294-3080 

• • SHSU Counseling Center Crisis Line: 936-294-1720 

• • TimelyCare: 833-484-6359 

• • University Police Department Emergency Line: 936-294-1000