LOOKING BACK, MOVING FORWARD: How Decades of Advocacy and Protests Led to Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Since 2001, April has been nationally and internationally recognized as Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Since 2019, The Center for Sexual Assault Survivors has hosted an annual walk to garner support and raise awareness for both survivors and the services they offer. The Center exists because of its survivors, supporters, and history.

While the "Walk in Their Shoes (WITS)" event may be seen as a single occasion to come together to raise awareness and support survivors, the concept of mobilizing communities to advocate for victims did not begin here. The walk is part of a decades-long movement, built step by step by survivors, advocates, and communities who refused to stay silent.

In the 1970s, in Philadelphia and neighboring university campuses, survivors and advocates organized the first Take Back the Night marches: a public demand for awareness to gender based violence towards women. These series of marches and walks created community spaces to demonstrate resistance, demand safety, and honor survivors. Cities like Philadelphia and college campuses across the country became the backdrop for these events. These marches not only influenced local culture but also garnered nationwide attention, furthering advocacy and the push for change.

Through the 1980s and 1990s, the anti-rape movement expanded across the United States. Feminism began to emerge as a political force aimed at systematically addressing sexual violence. Communities held marches, vigils, and awareness walks, drawing attention to issues that had long been ignored. While other states were developing coalitions and programs, Virginia established the Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance in 1981, enacting a statewide coalition to unite agencies, share resources, and advance advocacy. These collective efforts laid the groundwork for what is now recognized as Sexual Assault Awareness Month, demonstrating the power of community, the importance of showing up, and the value of amplifying survivor voices.

WITS “Walk in Their Shoes” carries that legacy forward. Each step taken at WITS honors the survivors, advocates, and communities that came before. From the Million Moms March in 2001, to the Women’s March in 2017, all of these events reinforce that change is built gradually—through one step at a time—and that the movement continues with every participant.

Join the WITS 2026 walk to be a part of this ongoing movement. Every step amplifies survivor voices, strengthens the community, and demonstrates that together, silence is not an option.

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