If you plan on hitting Beaver and College Avenue on October 26 without heels on, you may want to think again. On Thursday, Sisters on the Runway (SOTR) will rally the Penn State community to walk a mile in heels downtown to spread awareness and raise money for victims of domestic violence in their event appropriately titled “A Mile in Her Shoes.”
SOTR founder and former president Layla Taremi noted the importance of keeping in mind that domestic and sexual violence affects women, men and children. 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have been victims of physical violence by an intimate partner within their lifetime, while a report of child abuse is made every ten seconds. SOTR works to ensure these statistics one day change.
SOTR Penn State is only one of several nationwide chapters belonging to the greater Sisters on the Runway non-profit organization. Each chapter strives to better the lives of victims of abuse by donating to nearby resources with the same goal. The Penn State chapter directly donates all money made to the Centre County Women’s Resource Center, located right here in State College. This facility has saved countless lives through crisis intervention, services, education, and advocacy since opening in 1975.
The Executive Director of the Centre County Women’s Resource Center opened SOTR’s latest event by stating the following: “We’ve [the Centre County Women’s Resource Center] served over 1,500 men and women who are victims of sexual assault… half of them are Penn State Students.”
The constant threat of domestic and sexual assault is far too prevalent in our general society, but especially on college campuses; including our own. Issues such as sexual violence are often swept under the rug in fast paced environments like that of Penn State, making it integral for events like “A Mile in Her Shoes” to raise awareness in addition to raising funds.
Tickets are $5 to walk with heels and $10 to walk without heels, so if you do enough walking with heels over the weekends, there’s an alternative for you. Venmo, cash and check are accepted on the day of the event after registration.
So, if you don’t have plans on Thursday from 4:30 PM — 6:30 PM, you might as well work those calves out in heels while simultaneously combating one of society’s most troubling epidemics.
You can register for the walk here or donate to the Sisters on the Runway Penn State GoFundMe if you can’t make it.
If you or someone you know is struggling with abuse, do not hesitate to contact the Centre County Women’s Resource Center’s 24-hour hotline at 814-234-5050, or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 if you are outside of the State College area.
Credit: 1