Pledge Purple Week brings assault awareness to ECU student body

Blessing Aghimien

Students support ECU's Pledge Purple week and Take Back the Night during the 2016 Fall semester.

With a goal of educating and advocating in mind, East Carolina’s campus is filled with not only the color purple, but a passionate pledge for an important cause.

“Pledge Purple” is a year-long initiative to educate and advocate for the issues of violence, sexual assault and bullying. The event kicked off Monday on ECU’s campus for a week of sponsored events relating back to the initiative’s core.

ECU’s Associate Vice Chancellor Erik Kneubuehl is the Chair of the Pledge Purple Committee and began the event in 2015. This week’s events have taken place on both the ECU main campus and the Health Science Campus.

“This branded initiative helps to draw greater attention to already existing ECU and national programs and activities that continue to build a culture of non-violence, civil discourse and respect for others on our campus and in our communities,” said Kneubuehl.

To begin the week, students were asked to take the pledge to educate themselves and to never commit an act of violence, sexual assault or bullying. In addition, the students pledge to support fellow Pirates and safely intervene as an active bystander if they witness scenarios of violence, bullying or sexual assault.

On Tuesday, both campus sites played the It’s On Us video throughout the day. The video was ECU’s version of the nationally acknowledged “It’s On Us” sexual assault awareness campaign. Later in the day, Pirate Prize Patrol rode around campus and there was a free screening of the Audrie and Daisy film.

“Pledge Purple is an important event to have on college campuses especially since issues like these are so quick to be addressed then swept under the rug,” said freshman Jourdan Carr, a communication major. “I’m proud that ECU is one of those campuses.”

Yesterday, there was a Survivor’s Vigil followed by a Take Back the Night Walk. Both the walk and the vigil served as an effort to honor survivors of harassment and assault crimes, all while creating a sense of unity and support amongst the students and faculty who chose to attend.

“Since the 1970s men and women have come together participating in Take Back the Night marches on college campuses as well as communities around the world,” said Kneubuehl. “The peaceful march helps to draw attention to the programs focus and demonstrate solidarity that these are community issues and not just a women’s issue.”

Today at 7:30 p.m. in the Mendenhall Student Center, Pledge Purple’s 2016 keynote speaker will take to the stage. David Otunga is an actor, a WWE professional wrestler, reality TV star and a Harvard Law School-educated lawyer. Otunga will be talking to students about the adversities he has gone through in life and how he learned to set goals to overcome those obstacles.