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2 min read Public safety

Why I Wear Denim on Denim Day, and Why You Should Too

For me, as a survivor of violent crime and the founder of Crime Survivors, Denim Day is much more than a fashion statement.
Why I Wear Denim on Denim Day, and Why You Should Too

By Patricia Wenskunas, Founder & CEO, Crime Survivors

Every April, I invite people across the country to do something simple yet powerful: wear denim. For me, as a survivor of violent crime and the founder of Crime Survivors, Denim Day is much more than a fashion statement. It is a visible, united stand against victim-blaming and the dangerous myths that continue to surround sexual assault and violence.

Denim Day began in 1999 after the Italian Supreme Court overturned a rape conviction, ruling that because the young woman was wearing tight jeans, she must have helped her attacker remove them, implying consent. That outrageous decision sparked immediate outrage. Women in the Italian Parliament wore jeans to work the very next day, and the movement quickly spread worldwide. The core message has never changed: What a survivor wears is never an invitation for violence. Clothing is never consent. There is no excuse.

As the founder of Crime Survivors, I work every day with survivors who have been blamed, shamed, and disbelieved simply because of what they were wearing, where they were, or who they were with. I see the lasting trauma caused not only by the crime itself, but by a culture that still questions the survivor instead of holding the perpetrator accountable. Denim Day gives all of us, survivors, families, friends, and allies, the opportunity to reject those harmful stereotypes and send a clear message: we believe survivors, we support them, and we stand together.

This Wednesday, April 29, 2026, I challenge you to wear denim with purpose. Post a photo on social media. Tag @CrimeSurvivors and use #DenimDay. Let your jeans send a loud and unmistakable message: We stand with survivors. We reject victim-blaming. And together, we are stronger.

There is no excuse. There is never an invitation.

Wear denim. Take a stand.

Patricia Wenskunas
Founder & CEO
Crime Survivors www.crimesurvivors.org

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