Excerpts from an interview with Jennifer Curley, past co-coordinator of SAVE (2001-2003). Take Back The News: What college were you affiliated with for the Take Back The News print project? Jennifer Curley: La Salle University, Philadelphia, PA/Sexual Assault and Violence Ends (SAVE), a student-led anti-violence group that works to end sexual violence on campus through advocacy, organizing, education, and the creation of safe spaces TBTN: What month and year was the project completed/printed? JC: April 2003. SAVE also published a 2nd Take Back the News in 2004. TBTN: What media outlet did you use? JC: Printed booklet TBTN: How many people, including yourself, worked to organize the project? JC: About 10 students. We also had the support of the Women’s Studies program and our community service office. TBTN: How many stories were collected and published for the project? JC: About 6-7 TBTN: How difficult or easy was the print project to organize? JC: Overall, the process was pretty smooth. It took time and people. We printed up invitations and put them in bathroom stalls and in all student mailboxes, sent the invite over email, and used word-of-mouth. We made sure that people could submit them (their stories) anonymously through email or through a drop box. This was probably the most time-consuming part of the process—but also one of the most important. TBTN: What were the biggest challenges in organizing it? JC: Again, the biggest challenge was in the invitation—getting the word out, creating a space that was safe for submitting your story. We spent a lot time thinking about how and where to put the word out. TBTN: How did the print project affect your community? What was the response to it? JC: The impact was incredible. It served as the catalyst for the first Speak-Out on campus. Women who had written their stories were the first to speak—some read their stories and others referred back to it. This created a space for other people to share their stories as well. We were worried that people wouldn’t feel comfortable sharing their stories in a large group, but the Speak-Out lasted for three hours, with woman after woman sharing her story—some for the first time ever. I think as a community we needed it and were ready for it, but I think that Take Back the News made it possible to start. There was a noticeable shift in community awareness after this—no longer could the University pretend that it didn’t happen on our campus. We also had to reprint the publication—we ran out of copies very quickly. The impact on the women who wrote their stories was really powerful—for some of us, it was the first time that we had written them. The women who wrote their stories talked about the power they felt in doing it and about the movement towards healing in the writing. TBTN: What were the best aspects of the print project? JC: Breaking the silence on our campus, confronting the misconception that rape/sexual assault didn’t happen at La Salle, the power in coming together to share our stories—for our own personal power but also power to continue to make change on our campus. TBTN: What was the most rewarding part of the experience? JC: Creating a space for women to write their stories, writing my own story and really acknowledging what had happened to me instead of downplaying it TBTN: Would you do it again? Why or why not? JC: Absolutely. I am working for an organization called Southwest Women Working Together in Chicago as a community organizer and am working with a group of women that are interested in publishing a Take Back the News in the southwest side of the city. It will be community based instead of university-based and we have talked about the possibility of using space in a local newspaper as well as doing a booklet. I suggested it to them as a possible action because I think that it is a powerful first step to addressing violence on a community level. TBTN: Would you recommend to others also to organize a print project? JC: Yes—the process and the outcome are both catalysts for change. Excerpts from an interview with Danielle Kramer, Take Back the Night organizer, SUNY New Paltz, 2003-2004. Take Back The News: What month and year was the project completed/printed? Danielle Kramer: The first one was in April 2003 and the second was in May 2004. TBTN: What media outlet did you use? DK: College newspaper (The Oracle). TBTN: How many people, including yourself, worked to organize the project? DK: Myself. TBTN: About how many stories were collected and published for the project? DK: Approximately 8 stories combined in 2003 and 2004. TBTN: How difficult or easy was the print project to organize? DK: It was relatively easy to get the college newspaper to print the stories/put space aside for the stories in the paper. I created my own 1⁄4 sheets and 81/2x11 flyers to hand out and hang up on bulletin boards. The most difficult thing was waiting for submissions to come in. I checked the separate e-mail account I had created just for submissions daily and was overcome with mixed emotions when a story would come in—I was pleased that the project was getting noticed and people were contributing, but I was also in anguish over what they had to say. TBTN: How did the print project affect your community? What was the response to it? DK: Many people attended the “Speak Out” at the end of our Take Back the Night event but those who were not there could still access real stories through a free newspaper available all over campus and in town. TBTN: What were the best aspects of the print project? DK: Take Back the News served as a much needed vehicle for those who could not speak out in person. Survivors were able to express themselves anonymously while still having their voices heard by the public. TBTN: What was the most rewarding part of the experience? DK: Seeing survivors’ words in actual un-edited print and knowing, that for some, it was a therapeutic and empowering experience. TBTN: Would you do it again? Why or why not? DK: Yes, I would do it again, although I am no longer a student at SUNY New Paltz. With a small amount of effort I was able to give a voice to the voiceless. TBTN: Would you recommend to others also to organize a print project? DK: Yes, definitely.