BELLEVILLE – College students and community members can come together for a Take Back the Night walk.
On Thursday, April 30, 2026, Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC) in Belleville will host the annual demonstration and resource fair, which aims to raise awareness about sexual assault prevention and resources during Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The walk starts at 7 p.m. on SWIC’s Quad and will progress throughout campus, followed by a few speakers in the theater.
“It’s an event that is just a very supportive, trauma-informed environment,” explained Ella Barrett, executive director of Metro East Every Survivor Counts. “It’s to foster healing and solidarity for the community and show support for survivors in the community.”
Metro East ESC is an Alton-based organization that provides medical and legal advocacy for survivors of sexual violence. Barrett and Board Chair Amy Signore noted that the nonprofit is a major support for survivors by offering support groups, counseling and more in addition to advocacy.
During the Take Back the Night Walk, there will also be several resources on campus, including the St. Clair County Mental Health Board, the Madison County Child Advocacy Center, the sexual assault response team from Scott Air Force Base, and more. Signore, who also works as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) in the HSHS Hospital System, said her team will be onsite to answer questions.
“We’re going to highlight what services are available to people who have experienced violence,” Signore said. “I think events like this are really important because it shows that we are here for them. God forbid that something does happen, but they know that they are safe going to places to report that will respect them and provide them with the best care in a trauma-informed way.”
Take Back the Night Walks are common on college campuses, as college-aged kids experience high percentages of sexual assault. Signore noted that a lot of these students are also away from their families and friends, so showing them they have support in this community is important.
Barrett pointed out that victim-blaming is common on college campuses, and events like this aim to disrupt that narrative.
“There’s this high victim-blaming mentality on college campuses — what they were wearing, what they were drinking, what they were doing, where they were at,” she said. “Having it on a college campus is a way to combat the rape culture that we see within college campuses and within society overall.”
Metro East ESC will organize several other events and programs for Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Denim Day is held annually to commemorate an Italian court case where an individual accused of sexual assault was not convicted because the judge ruled the victim’s jeans were too tight. Metro East ESC always offers programming on this day, along with silent protests and other events aimed to increase awareness surrounding sexual assault throughout April.
The Take Back the Night Walk at SWIC invites the community to join them in this mission. For more information about the event or to RSVP for the speaker portion of the evening, click here. You can purchase a t-shirt here, and all proceeds will go back to Metro East ESC. To learn more about the organization, visit the official Metro East Every Survivor Counts website.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault or abuse, help is available. You can contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline (RAINN) at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit rainn.org for confidential support and local resources. For immediate emotional support or if you’re in crisis, call or text 988 (the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline).
