Red Deerians marched from City Hall to Rotary Park to Take Back the Night and stand up to sexual violence.
Five Red Deer College students organized a Red Deer Unite! Take Back the Night event Thursday, which featured the march, speakers, a candlelight vigil, and a moment of silence.
Meagan Gaalaas, one of the student organizers, is a victim of sexual violence.
“It took many years of reflection, professional help and personal growth to allow me to stand here today and share this story,” Gaalaas said to a crowd of about 40 people.
Gaalaas said she was sexually assaulted by two men she worked with.
“I was 18 years old,” she said. “It all began will the cat-calling, whistling, and inappropriate comments here and there.”
She was out dancing with friends one night when she ran into them. The men offered her a ride home, which she accepted. After closing her eyes for a bit, she reopened them to find the vehicle parked in a wooded area.
“I remember being so confused about where we were. I still to this day don’t know where they had taken me.
“It all seemed to happen so fast,” she said. “I screamed as loud as I could to make them stop. I remember pushing my hands into his face, but the force was too much.”
Gaalaas went to the hospital for a rape kit examination and then met with police.
“When the police came to question me, the first thing they asked me was, ‘What were you wearing?’ Like that had something to do with it,” said Gaalaas.
Gaalaas said she waited for years for the case to go to trial, but it never did.
“My mother and I called the RCMP asking what was happening with the case, and they kept saying the case was being made and I had to wait,” she said.
After four years, Gaalaas’ lawyer advised her not to go to court because “it had been way too long and the defence lawyers would tear me apart with accusations of my memory not being reliable.”
It felt like no one cared, Gaalaas said.
“I never asked for this. No one asks for this,” she said. “I can’t change what happened to me, but what I was able to change was my perception of what happened. I no longer feel guilty or question whether the incident was my fault.”
Gaalaas said she’s proud to live in a community that supports promoting awareness on sensitive topics like sexual violence.
“These topics are never easy to talk about, but openly discussing sexual violence is vital for educating communities, protecting youth and showing survivors they are not alone,” she said.
Gaalaas said she and the other student organizers – Heidi Coltman, Jade Fleury, Shentel Kerr and Skylar Remple – were happy so many came to the event.
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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