audio story by Avery de Carion
A group of Cal Poly students directed a campus walkout to advocate for the prevention of sexual violence.
The event was held in honor of the National Day of Action and was promoted by the Cal Poly Democrats club and the Feminist Generation organization and started on Dexter Lawn.
MacGregor Lang, an environmental management and protection sophomore, took the initiative to lead the walkout on his own. Directing a group of around 15 students, Lang led the group around campus from Dexter Lawn and through the University Union, ending at the Administration Building.
Held in recognition of the sexual violence endured by Cornell’s “Jane Doe,” the walkout consisted of Lang reciting call-and-response chants that advocated for the voices of sexual assault survivors including, “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!” and “Whatever we wear, wherever we go, yes means yes and no means no!”
Despite not being affiliated with the clubs that promoted the event, Lang conducted the walkout himself to emphasize the importance of protesting and speaking out about issues that affect the community.
“I want to normalize a culture of protest,” Lang said. “We’re living in, definitely like, politically tumultuous times, and the Cornell 7 and issues around rape culture, that’s just one of a number of important issues.”
After seeing the event advertised on a Black Student Union flyer, Laila Archer, an interdisciplinary studies junior, decided to join the walkout to represent the impact civic responsibilities have on the general public.
“I think it’s important for people to show up so there’s less NPCs on campus, and there’s more active listeners and active civic engagement,” Archer said. “So when they graduate, there are adults that don’t just watch the news, but want to vote or do something in the world.”
Kenneth Tran, a mechanical engineering freshman, was encouraged by a professor to attend the walkout in order to practice meaningful activism for the issues they believe in. He believes survivors need to stick together.
“It’s so important for other survivors to see that there’s other people out there that have [gone] through the same things that they have been through,” Tran said.
Editor’s Note: This story was edited to correct the clubs’ affiliation with the event.