Students Take Back the Night

Despite the wintry chill, more than 200 students attended the 13th annual "take Back the Night" rally held at the Malkin Athletic Center (MAC) quad last night.

About 25 female students shared their personal experiences as victims of rape and sexual harassment, giving impromptu speeches to the assembly.

The speeches were interrupted early in the evening when three men went to the open microphone and denounced the rally.

The a capella group Amani performed at the rally, singing songs on themes of abuse and recovery. The event concluded with a march toward the Radcliffe quad.

The purpose of the rally, according to event organizers, was to "commemorate and struggle for the rights for the safety of women."

Many speakers emphasized that rape victims should share their experiences and reach out for help. Some students recounted their experiences of suffering and recovery after they had been victimized.

"I was much too afraid to tell anyone what had happened," said another student rape victim. "What has happened to me I do not wish to happen to others."

Questions about University policy on rape were also raised.

One student said her lawyer had informed her that University administrators have given rapists from with-in the Harvard community undue leniency by not prosecuting them to the full extent of law.

After the first speech, the forum was interrupted by three men who said that they had "attended a prochoice rally with rabid feminists" earlier on during the day. One organizers said she thought the men were from the conservative magazine Peninsula.

Radcliffe Union of students co President Anne W. Guiney '95 went to the stage and told the men that their action was both "inappropriate" and "disrespectful."