‘Rape Free Zone’ T-shirts send a misguided message

TO THE EDITOR:

Last week, I received a free T-shirt in the Pit proclaiming on a neon green shirt that I am a “Rape Free Zone.”

I considered the logo kind of misguided, but took the shirt anyway because it was for a good cause.

On the back of the shirt I signed a pledge “to take a stand against sexual violence in order to begin the real practice of equality and freedom.”

I wore my shirt on Friday and walked past a group of guys that said, “Oh darn, we can’t rape her. She’s a rape-free zone.”

Other people watched me walk by with quizzical expressions on their faces.

It was only while wearing the shirt that I realized how insensitive it actually is.

There are numerous victims of sexual assault on UNC’s campus. Is it really advisable to wear T-shirts that could serve as a reminder of their experience?

Furthermore, the pledge on the back was superfluous.

I may be naïve, but I feel it ought to be an inherent goal to end sexual violence.

This should be accomplished through community efforts bound by morality rather than just a sloppy signature on a T-shirt.

Those shirts bring awareness of sexual violence, but not in the intended way.

Abby Chiaramonte ’15
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