As a way to honor Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the Bruins Consent Coalition planned a walk around the Creek campus for April 29th. 

“It’s important that we educate and support and advocate for consent,” senior and Coalition president Giselle Yokomichi said. 

The Bruin Consent Coalition is a student-run after-school organization that aims to promote a dialogue about sexual violence. It was inspired by Katie Koestner’s organization Take Back the Night, which aims to educate people on consent and sexual assault. Their monthly meetings alternate between specific themes, but one thing remains constant: to bring awareness to and end sexual violence.

“I wanted to create a safe space where survivors can come and [be part of] a community, and people who don’t know can be educated,” senior Nour Kreishan, co-founder and president of the Bruins Consent Coalition, said. 

The Coalition thought the final stretch of the school year would be perfect to recognize their mission.

“We knew from the beginning of the year that April was going to be a big deal for us,” Kreishan said. “It was going to be a good way to end the year.”

In preparation for the walk, the club put up posters and signs around campus that gave statistics about sexual assault. For example, according to the National Sexual Assault Resource Center one in every five women experience rape or attempted rape in their lifetime. 

The walk tracked from the entrance of IC, circling Campus and Bellview, before looping back through the west parking lot and finishing back at the entrance of IC. 

“Seeing that there are so many people here who like to care about the topic and are willing to go on a 1.2-mile walk is powerful, ” Kreishan said. 

The club hopes to grow and hold more events to raise money and awareness in the coming years. Junior Kelsey Ayer, who will be the club president next year, hopes to have more events and activities. This year, the club was still establishing itself; next year, they hope to broaden their horizons. 

Outside of this march, the Bruins Consent Coalition provides survivors of sexual assault with a safe space and continues to raise awareness. 

“It’s important to raise awareness and spread it while we’re in high school, so that when we become adults and we leave, we can educate not only ourselves,” Yokomichi said.