[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[House]
[Pages 5190-5191]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                               DENIM DAY

  (Ms. SPEIER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. SPEIER. Mr. Speaker, in 1999, the Italian Supreme Court ruled 
that a 45-year-old driving instructor had not raped his 18-year-old 
student because she ``wore very, very tight jeans, she had to help 
remove them, and by removing the jeans it was no longer rape but 
consensual sex.''
  Outraged, the women in the Italian Parliament said they would wear 
jeans to work until decisions were changed. Their protests spurred 
action across the globe.
  Seventeen years later, and during Sexual Assault Awareness Month, I 
wear this denim jacket in solidarity with survivors and advocates 
around the world. I wish I could say that the need for Denim Day was a 
thing of the past. But, unfortunately, sexual assaults remain rampant, 
including in our military and on our college campuses. In fact, one in 
five college coeds will be raped or some sexual assault will be 
attempted on them, and 20,000 men and women in the military are 
assaulted each year.
  I urge my colleagues to wear denim today, and to support sexual 
violence prevention and education every day.

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