The 2024 Safehouse Walk in Her Shoes event on April 24 at the Cheyenne Depot Plaza was a great success! Walk in Her Shoes is an event put on by Safehouse Services where men walk in women's shoes to raise awareness on the issues of rape, sexual assault, and violence toward women. However, this type of violence affects men as well, as 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men have been victims of severe physical violence, as stated in the National Statistics Domestic Violence fact sheet.
Participants in this yearly event range from current and former law enforcement like me, who have borne witness to the crushing effects of sexual violence, to concerned members of the public and others affected by it. I donned my usual pair of size 13 red heels and, along with the other men in the group, walked around the plaza with signs commemorating the event. This is an event I deeply believe in and have participated in for several years.
This year, Safehouse displayed over 40 pairs of jeans decorated by various law enforcement, judicial, military, and private partners to highlight Denim Day. Denim Day has its roots in Italy, where in 1992, a young woman was raped by her driving instructor and, after initially being convicted and sentenced to prison, had his sentence overturned by the Italian Supreme Court because the victim was wearing tight jeans at the time of the attack. In the opinion of the Italian Supreme Court, the victim had to have assisted in removing her jeans because of how tight they were on her and deemed the encounter consensual and not rape. This form of Neanderthal thinking is unconscionable to me. During my 27-year career in law enforcement, I investigated instances where victims of these heinous crimes were forced, coerced, or threatened to do whatever the attacker wished out of fear for their lives or the lives of someone they cared about. After the 1992 ruling, the women in the Italian Parliament launched a protest, wearing jeans on the steps of the Italian Supreme Court. After reading the report on this case, the Executive Director of Peace Over Violence launched the first Denim Day in the United States in 1999, held annually.
Safehouse is a not-for-profit organization that operates a shelter and facilitates support groups, advocacy programs, and numerous other services. Please consider supporting this worthy organization.
Thank you for being there for the victims, Safehouse!