Awareness-raising and Reclaim the Night 
www.isis.aust.com/rtn/aware.htm

Much energy is devoted by organising groups into the promotion of Reclaim the Night activities, as well as public education about the issues surrounding sexual assault. Opportunities are available throughout the planning stages to do this. 

Promotion, education and lobbying aim to:

  • encourage as wide a range of women and children to participate in the activities

  • raise awareness about the impact of sexual assault in the wider community

  • make demands on key people to take action, to challenge existing situations and environments which allow sexual violence against women to continue

Some women continue this work throughout the year. We have included a list of other events and actions to keep up the momentum in the resources in Part Two of this collection.

Groups have found it useful to devote the first few meetings to gathering local information, identifying the myths that abound and identifying local issues for action, as well as connecting up with other RTN groups to identify the issues in common. 

The recurring issues we found in talking with women across the state, and which raise most controversy in the media, the wider community and among groups members themselves are:

  • disbelief about the real extent of the problem, due to the under reporting of sexual assaults to organisations like the police and sexual assault services

  • a culture of denial about the existence and extent of sexual assault within a community

  •  the myths about sexual assault are widely believed

  •  that it is up to women to change their behaviour

  • the level of men's participation in the event

  •  the misrepresentation and trivialisation of feminist action, for example by portraying women who march as Aman-haters@, Alesbians@, A a lunatic fringe@etc

We have included a range of referenced facts and figures from official statistics and research studies, in the resources in Part Two of this collection. A range of ways that different groups have put such information together in media releases, information sheets and posters are also included in the Resource section.

Displays in Dubbo

Dubbo RTN Committee made up A4 sized fact sheets (see resources in Part Two). These were blown up on a photocopier into A3 posters and used to form part of their display stand on the day of their 1997 event (see photograph). They also did chalk paintings on a paved area in the town.

Bobby from Wauchope provided a great article, 'A New Focus to Stop Rapes', from the US which identifies key issues surrounding rape. This has also been included in the resources in Part Two of this collection. There's some good information in the women's speeches in the Resource section.



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