Students stand against sexual assault for CSUN’s Denim Day

Aiden Hinojos, Contributor

May 1, 2026

Artists spoke with CSUN students in order to create art based on student experiences for Denim Day at the CSUN Clergy Walk on April 29th, 2026.

Every year on the last Wednesday of April, the CSUN Campus Care Advocates (CCA) organises an event to raise awareness on sexual assault. This year, CCA hosted a Denim Day art gallery on April 29 in the CSUN Clergy Walk. Campus Care Advocates (CCA) invited sexual assault survivors and other services that cater to their needs.

CSUN students passing by were also allowed to add words of encouragement or art on a denim quilt. According to Campus Care Lead Advocate and Coordinator Andrea Ortiz, the quilts get larger every year.

The idea behind Denim Day was inspired by a sexual assault case that occurred in Italy in the ‘90s in which an 18-year-old woman was raped by her driving instructor. The abuser claimed the interaction was consensual and appealed the conviction, thus sending the case all the way to the Italian Supreme Court.

The case was dismissed due to the Justices determining that she was wearing such tight jeans and, therefore, must have helped her rapist remove them, consenting to the act.

An art station where students could create supportive messages on denim with markers and sharpies to add onto the quilt for Denim Day at the CSUN Clergy Walk on April 29th, 2026.

This sparked outrage across Italy, and in retaliation, women began wearing jeans in solidarity with the victim, marking the creation of Denim Day.

“These things are happening. You didn’t ask for it, you didn’t deserve it, but you do deserve support,” Ortiz said. “It’s not something that’s talked about a lot for survivors. It’s really hard to come out and share their story or get support and get help.”

Ortiz is a CSUN alum giving back to the community by being an integral part of CCA and helping give students who may have been survivors of sexual assault the support that they need.

Although Campus Care is a free resource for students, many are unaware of its services. Emily Arana, prevention education and outreach specialist, hopes to increase awareness of the resource.

“For such a big campus, I feel like a lot of resources can be overlooked, and our program is really interesting because we’re completely free, confidential and we support students,” Arana said.

CCA offers a plethora of services, including accompaniments, crisis intervention and counselling, advocacy, prevention and outreach. Students can find them at the CSUN Klotz Student Health Center from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“I think it’s very important that students feel supported and that they know there’s a resource available that’s here for them,” Arana said.