Awareness Months

Awareness months

Awareness months offer students a way to be actively engaged in speaking out about an issue related to sexual violence. Our activities and events encourage public discourse on important topics in violence prevention at The University of Chicago and at colleges and universities across the country.

There are three major awareness months related to sexual violence around which we program at UChicago.

October – Domestic/ Intimate Partner Violence Awareness Month

Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM) evolved from the “Day of Unity” held in October 1981 and conceived by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. The intent was to connect advocates across the nation who were working to end violence against women and their children. With the recognition that intimate relationship violence occurs among college students, this awareness month has become a mainstay on campuses.  

January – Stalking Awareness Month

The newest of the awareness months, Stalking Awareness Month, provides students an opportunity to learn what stalking is and the various forms it can take, to identify behaviors that indicate stalking and to know what interventions to take on behalf of yourself and/or your friends.  

April – Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) is an annual campaign to raise public awareness about sexual assault and educate communities and individuals on how to prevent sexual violence. SAAM activities and events allow the campus community to make a public stand against victim-blaming, understand the importance of believing survivors, and embrace their voices to create a campus where sexual violence has no place.