Wear Jeans on Wednesday to Protest Sexual Violence

Many City Hall employees will be wearing blue jeans to work on Wednesday, not because it’s a casual day, but to raise awareness about rape and sexual assault. It’s a part of the city’s annual Denim Day observance.

People throughout West Hollywood are encouraged to wear denim to show their support for ending sexual violence against women and men, girls and boys around the globe.

A Denim Day gathering will be held in the lobby of City Hall at 9:30 a.m. with speakers and an information table. The event is sponsored by the city’s Public Safety division.

Captain Kelley Fraser from the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Department will be on hand to address rape statistics in Los Angeles County, as well as the status of rape kits in the county.

Hillary Selvin, Executive Director of the National Council of Jewish Women – Los Angeles, will also be on hand to speak about local resources available to victims and their families.

Denim Day grew out of a 1992 Italian case where a man raped an 18-year-old girl. The judge dismissed the case because the girl was wearing tight blue jeans at the time of the rape.

Denim Day in Los Angeles was started in 1999 by Peace Over Violence, a 40-year-old non-profit dedicated to raising awareness of sexual violence and prevention. People are asked to wear blue jeans as a visible sign of protest against the myths that continue to surround sexual assault.

According to statistics from Peace Over Violence, every 2.5 minutes someone in the United States is sexually assaulted, 17.7 million women in the US have been victims of attempted rape and 2 million children around the world are forced into prostitution each year.