On Thursday, students across campus joined the rest of the nation in raising awareness of domestic violence by incorporating various hues of purple into their outfits.
“National Wear Purple Day,” observed on the third Thursday of October, encourages people to wear purple in solidarity with survivors of domestic violence, and is one of many activities that takes place during October as part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Susie Park, a sophomore studying business of cinematic arts, says that the effort to raise awareness during October will benefit those affected by it.
“Domestic violence is very real and it’s very traumatizing,” Park said. “Without enough resources, people who are in those positions, victims of domestic violence, may be afraid to come out or know who to contact if they’re going through that.”
The history behind DVAM dates back to 1917, when the National Woman’s Party was formed to advocate for women’s suffrage and human rights. The NWP declared white gold, and purple as their official colors. In 1978, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence was formed. Later that year, over 100,000 women wore purple and marched in Washington D.C. to advocate for equal rights. according to the official website of Connections for Abused Women and their Children.
In 1981, the NCADV declared October 17 as the National Day of Unity, which eventually evolved into DVAM.
Zayn Siddique, a senior studying applied and computational mathematics, says that a month is the ideal length to bring more attention towards the issue of domestic violence.
“I feel like it’s not something you can capture within a day, definitely. And I feel like a month is a good way to, almost like market it to people, make it known, so it doesn’t just pass people by, because it is a serious issue,” Siddique said.
USC offers year-round resources for students who have been affected by domestic violence.
CARE-SC is the University’s Confidential Advocacy, Resources, and Education Support Center. According to CARE-SC’s official website, “our confidential advocates, prevention educators, and professional counseling teams work to promote a universal culture of consent, and prevent and respond to gender and power-based harm.” The center provides a 24/7 support line that connects students involved in gender and power-based harm with a confidential advocate team.
In regards to spreading awareness of these resources to students, Sam Bitman, a senior studying journalism, says there’s always room for improvement.
“It’s not really resources I’ve sought out myself, so I can’t speak to how much they’re bringing awareness to their resources, but Yyu could probably always improve on how you’re getting [resource awareness] out there,” Bitman said. “Whether that’s creating workshops that help people out or just even more advertising on campus, whether that’s flyers or something else, something can always help.”