Mayor’s Office to End Domestic & Gender-Based Violence and Denim Day NYC Committee Celebrate “Denim Day NYC 2023” with March and Rally Against Sexual Violence

Survivors, Advocates, Community-based Organizations Kicked Day Off at Brooklyn Borough Hall event, then Marched over Brooklyn Bridge to Rally in Foley Square

Special Guests Included Baseball Hall of Famer Joe Torre and Ali Torre, Anti-Domestic & Gender-Based Violence Advocates and Allies

NEW YORK, NY – The Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence (ENDGBV) and the Denim Day NYC Committee (DDNYC), hosted “Denim Day NYC 2023” today with a brief opening ceremony for survivors and advocates at Brooklyn Borough Hall before attendees marched over the Brooklyn Bridge to rally against sexual violence in Manhattan’s Foley Square.

April is Sexual Violence Awareness Month (SVAM), and an important part of SVAM is Denim Day, which takes place each year on the last Wednesday of April when people across the world wear denim to raise awareness of sexual violence, stand up for survivors, and speak out against societal myths and attitudes that normalize and perpetuate sexual violence. ENDGBV and DDNYC’s coalition of survivors, advocates, service providers, city council members, and city agencies have partnered to plan educational and outreach events throughout the City every April since 2010. This year’s Denim Day theme of ‘take space and make space’ stresses the importance of living, moving, and celebrating oneself in spaces without the fear of sexual violence. Mayor Eric Adams and his leadership team bolstered SVAM and Denim Day by creating an inspirational video of support shared widely on social media and broadcasted on various city-owned channels to encourage New Yorker campaign participation.

“Sexual violence and assault can happen to anyone. We want survivors to know that they are not alone, and New York City is here to help and support them,” said New York City Mayor Eric Adams. “Our administration is committed to advancing our response to domestic and gender-based violence and strengthening support for survivors. I encourage all New Yorkers to join us and learn what you can do to understand sexual violence, to prevent it, and to end it.”

“Sexual violence touches so many people - individuals, families, friends, colleagues, and loved ones,” said New York City Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom. “Today we show our solidarity with every survivor and every advocate, as we mark April as Sexual Violence Awareness Month and Denim Day NYC. We raise the voices of every person touched by this issue, fight against harmful myths that normalize sexual violence, and we reaffirm our commitment to live in a world free of sexual violence.”

“This year’s Denim Day theme of ‘take space and make space’ is a call action to live fully in our identities without having to make ourselves smaller,” said Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence Commissioner Cecile Noel. “By uplifting the voices of survivors today, and every day, we change the conversation around sexual violence, which impacts people of all genders but has a disproportionate impact on women and girls, transgender, gender non-conforming, and non-binary individuals. We hope New Yorkers will help us stand up to sexual violence by challenging the deeply destructive and dehumanizing societal norms that enable all gendered violence and ensuring survivor safety in all shared spaces.”

Brooklyn Deputy Borough President Reverend Kim Council kicked off today at Brooklyn Borough Hall with rousing remarks to prepare the crowd before their march over Brooklyn Bridge to Foley Square. The Drumline from Brooklyn’s PROGRESS High School for Professional Careers greeted the crowd as they walked into Manhattan with stirring chants of support for survivors. ENDGBV Commissioner Noel welcomed marchers to Foley Square before introducing special guests, including Safe At Home co-founders and co-chairpersons Joe Torre and Ali Torre. The Torre’s inspired the crowd when sharing Safe At Home’s twenty-year journey of reaching more than 140,000 students with services and education to help heal from the trauma of domestic and gender-based violence. The rally included a diverse group of participants sharing powerful survivor stories, calls to action and demands for an end to sexual violence. Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine joined the hour-long rally and encouraged continued civic engagement in support of survivors. Jennifer Barnes-Balenciaga, a commissioner with New York City’s Commission on Gender Equity (CGE), elevated the significance of uplifting and protecting marginalized communities most often impacted by sexual violence. Brooklyn’s Liberty Middle School Step Team, known as the "The Force," wowed onlookers. New York City Council Members and Women’s Caucus Co-Chairs Amanda Farías and Farah Louis shared their support for survivors and led cries of defiance against sexual violence. At the close of the rally, attendees visited tables with resources and wellness stations provided by ENDGBV, DDNYC and community-based organization.

Immediately following today’s events, ENDGBV will attend the Queens’ Defenders Queens Denim Day march. Yesterday, ENDGBV’s Staten Island Family Justice Center staff and DDNYC joined the Richmond County District Attorney’s office and community-based organizations on the steps of Staten Island’s Borough Hall to rally in support of survivors. ENDGBV and DDNYC also co-sponsored the Bronx Denim Day march and rally with Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson and Bronx-based survivors, advocates, community-based organizations, and students from local colleges at Bronx Borough Hall last Thursday.

If you, or someone you know, is seeking support regarding sexual violence, free and confidential help is always available. Find resources and support in NYC by searching the NYCHope Resource Directory, or call 311 to be connected to the nearest NYC Family Justice Center. You are not alone, you are never alone, and help is here for you.

“Safe Horizon is proud to stand in solidarity and in community with survivors and advocates this Denim Day,” said Jimmy Meagher, Policy Director, Safe Horizon and Secretary, Denim Day NYC. “We are a proud member of Denim Day NYC and gladly celebrate this year's theme #TakeSpaceMakeSpaceNYC with our community. Together we can create a world in which everyone has the right to safety and expression without fear from violence. A future free of violence is possible, and we are committed to working alongside our community to create that future.”

“Exposure to violence, abuse, trauma and sexual assault can have significant and damaging long-term effects on children,” said Joe Torre, Baseball Hall of Famer, Co-Founder and Co-Chairman, Joe Torre Safe At Home. “Ali and I are proud to participate today, representing Safe At Home, which provides healing services to youth who have been traumatized by exposure to violence including domestic violence, child abuse, teen dating abuse, and sexual assault in order to empower them to live healthy lives free of violence.” Ali Torre, Co-Founder and Co-Chairman, Safe At Home added: “Joe and I are honored to participate in Denim Day NYC 2023, and know that together, we will end the cycle of violence and save lives.”

“Denim Day is an important reminder of the shared commitment, activism, and allyship of New Yorkers who take space on days like today to increase awareness about the scourge of sexual violence, and who make space for survivors to share their stories and make their voices heard,” said Executive Director of the Commission on Gender Equity Jacqueline M. Ebanks. “Today and every day, the Commission on Gender Equity works with our partners and all New Yorkers to create a New York City free from gender- and race-based violence.”    

“The theme of ‘Take Space, Make Space’ for the 24th year of Denim Day should remind us, and those we touch, to keep uplifting those not often discussed,” said Jennifer Barnes-Balenciaga, Director of Crystal La’Beija Organizing Fellowship (CLOF). “That includes men and women of trans experience. Let this day mark a new kind of inclusion of how we show up for others who are harmed and thank the LGBTQ+ allies who work in tandem on the issue of gender-based violence." 

“Sexual violence impacts every community across New York, including people of any age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or disability, immigration or socio-economic status.  And every single survivor, from any background and most certainly no matter what they are wearing - even blue jeans – deserves our support and our belief,” said Emily Miles, Executive Director, New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault. “We come together in coalition with our Denim Day NYC partners this and every April to lift up the needs and experiences of the full diversity of survivors of sexual violence across New York City and commit to ensuring their voices are heard even beyond this day of solidarity.”

“Gender-based violence and discrimination do not happen in a vacuum. They affect all aspects of a person’s life: their mental health, work, and housing environment among other aspects of daily life,” said Commissioner & Chair of the NYC Commission on Human Rights, Annabel Palma. “In New York City, no one can be penalized at work, denied a job, or rejected from housing because they’ve experienced gender-based violence. No one should be disrespected or made to feel unsafe in their workplace because of their gender. New Yorkers can avail themselves of their rights with the New York City Commission on Human Rights. As the city agency empowered to prevent discrimination and enforce the New York City Human Rights Law, we strive to foster a city where everyone can live, work, and thrive. We will do everything within our power to protect those who have experienced gender-based violence from discrimination. We see you and stand with you.”

"Denim Day is a stark reminder that sexual assault and violence are pervasive and can happen to anyone," said Mayor's Office of Equity Commissioner Sideya Sherman. "Raising awareness is a critical first step; standing unified with action is the follow-up. The Mayor's Office of Equity stands in solidarity with survivors, demanding an end to sexual and gender-based violence, not just in our city but throughout our nation."

“Brooklyn Borough Hall will always be a home to Denim Day NYC 2023 in support of what it stands for: standing up for survivors and speaking out against attitudes that normalize and perpetuate sexual violence,” said Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. “The day’s advocacy and empowerment hums through the halls as young adults showcase their defiance of societal norms that continue to encourage victim blaming and re-traumatize survivors. Thank you to the Mayor’s Office to End Gender-Based Violence and their partners for their continued work around sexual assault.”

“Every year on Denim Day, we come together to proclaim the same message: We believe and support survivors of sexual violence," said Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine. "Denim Day is a crucial space for survivors to find empowerment and solidarity, and for allies to further the work of creating a future that centers consent and bodily autonomy.”

"This Denim Day, I am proud to stand with my colleagues in championing a city in which everyone has a right to safety,” said New York City Council Member Tiffany Cabán. “That means all of us with freedom from fear, the latitude to explore who we really are, the power see ourselves as unique individuals with the right to be whoever we are in the world, and the felt understanding that our existence is valid -- that we all belong. Furthermore, we know that being free from the threat of sexual violence means having reliable housing, a decent income, readily available care of all sorts, and more, and we know that, when one of us does survive a sexual assault, they deserve a survivor-centered, trauma-informed process in which survivors, those who've done harm, and their communities all come together to determine how to make things as right as possible, and how best to foster healing and growth going forward. That is my commitment as a member of the Women's Caucus, as Chair of the Committee on Women & Gender Equity, and as a member of this historic majority-woman City Council."

"We cannot be silent about things that matter,” said Rick Davy, BK Style Foundation Director. “Team BK Style knows that it matters to support survivors as part of the Denim Day NYC mission.” Foundation Director.

“For over 30 years, STEPS to End Violence - a program of Rising Ground - has created innovative programming to help survivors of all ages heal and to help youth identify unhealthy behaviors to prevent abuse from happening,” said Connie Márquez, Vice President of Community Services & Strategic Partnerships with Rising Ground / STEPS to End Family Violence. “We are a proud partner of Denim Day NYC and stand in committed solidarity with our public and private partners, allies and fellow New Yorkers committed to ending cycles of abuse and promoting safety and peace.”

"Sexual violence remains devastatingly pervasive and underreported, while misinformation is prevalent,” said Shan Huang, Associate Director of Special Programs with WomanKind. “On denim day, we wear jeans to highlight misconceptions surrounding sexual violence, and show our support for all survivors. This day has become a strong symbol of strength and solidarity. At Womankind, we will continue creating space for communal healing, by making survivors’ cultures front and centering their own individual journeys towards transformation, empowerment, and renewal."

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About the Mayor’s Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence
The Mayor's Office to End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence (ENDGBV) develops policies and programs, provides training and prevention education, conducts research and evaluations, performs community outreach, and operates the New York City Family Justice Centers. We collaborate with City agencies and community stakeholders to ensure access to inclusive services for survivors of domestic and gender-based violence (GBV). GBV includes intimate partner violence, family violence, elder abuse, sexual violence (which can include sexual harassment), stalking, and human trafficking. Read more about the term.

The NYC Family Justice Centers are co‐located multidisciplinary service centers providing vital social services, civil legal, and criminal justice assistance for survivors of domestic and gender-based violence and their children—all under one roof. For more information, visit nyc.gov/ENDGBV or visit us on visit us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

About Denim Day NYC

Denim Day NYC is a coalition of survivors, advocates, community organizations, city council members, and city agencies working together to raise awareness about sexual assault. Denim Day NYC hosts events throughout the year all around NYC to promote awareness about sexual assault and connect New Yorkers to resources. Since 2010, Denim Day NYC has hosted a rally and press conference in April during Sexual Assault Awareness Month to unite New Yorkers around the issue of sexual assault and show solidarity with survivors.

About “Denim Day”

Denim Day is an annual global day of action on the last Wednesday of April- Sexual Violence Awareness Month (SVAM). Denim Day began as protest to a 1998 Italian Supreme Court decision that overturned a rape conviction because the victim wore tight jeans. The judge concluded that the victim “must have helped her assailant remove her jeans” and therefore gave consent. People were outraged around the world, and wearing jeans became an international symbol to assert that there is never an excuse for sexual violence. In 2010, Denim Day NYC, a coalition of advocates, city agencies and survivors, was established to march in honor of survivors everywhere, to raise awareness, spread information, and move to end sexual violence around the world.