On April 21, Keene State College hosted its 12th annual Walk a Mile in Her Shoes, where participants marched from campus to downtown to raise money and awareness for sexual assault.
Men were encouraged to wear women’s shoes to show empathy towards women who worry about sexual assault every day.
The March’s Grand Marshal, Adam Reinoni, began the event by talking about why he marches every year.
“I stand with and believe those that have been assaulted,” he said. “I stand with men who reject violence as a part of masculinity, and I stand with women who are resilient, strong, independent and want to wear whatever shoes they feel comfortable in.”
colton mccracken / senior photographer
KSC’s Interim President Dr. Melinda Treadwell spoke on how domestic violence has gone down since the passing of the Violence Against Women Act in 1994, but little progress has been made towards keeping college women safe.
“One in five women will be sexually assaulted in her college career,” she said in a speech. “This is something that we care deeply about at Keene State and it’s a tireless focus for what we do as a community, but it’s an outrage that we still see these numbers in our country.”
However, Treadwell was hopeful that change will come soon, saying that college campuses are essential towards prevention by empowering survivors and allowing them to safely report assaults.
“…Keene State will not only continue the work that we’re doing, but do more and more and more, and the work that Forrest Seymour leads with our No Zebras program and others that we do as a campus will become increasingly important for us moving forward,” she said.
Jake Kondrat and Tyler Harrington of the Mentors in Violence Protection also spoke about the importance of marching and raising awareness, saying that sexual violence affects everyone.
“Every time I think about this event, I think of it like throwing a rock into a pond,” he said. “When you throw a rock into a pond you get this big beautiful splash, and eventually that ends, but that doesn’t mean it’s done. You get ripples that continue to go much further than that initial splash.”
Program Manager for Diversity & Multiculturalism Initiatives Kim Schmidl-Gagne delivered a speech on behalf of Senator Molly Kelly, who was not able to attend the march.
“I am proud of the men, women and Keene State College students who stand strong together to end the sexual assault and abuse against women,” she said. “Showing your support by symbolically walking in her shoes helps shine a new light on this pervasive problem in our culture,” she said.
Izzy Manzo can be contacted at imanzo@kscequinox.com
