Rally, March Held to Protest Sexual, Domestic Violence

Standing near the Buenaventura Mission amid a sea of flickering candles, activist Linda Livingston read aloud a painful letter from a 20-year-old college student and rape victim.

“I can only describe it as the nightmare that has permeated all of my dreams,” she began. “There will always be nights that I awaken in a puddle of sweat, because scenes from the rape have crept into my bed at night.”

It is only fitting, Livingston continued, that the nearly 200 people gathered in the dimly lit Mission Park take back the night for those victims who so often relive the trauma of their sexual assault each time they close their eyes.

And with those words, the crowd slowly gathered to begin a mile-long march through downtown Ventura on Wednesday night in recognition of victims of sexual violence.

The event, aimed at empowering women and promoting awareness of such crimes, comes on the heels of three high-profile incidents in Ventura County that have drawn attention to both sexual and domestic violence.

In February, a 38-year-old Oxnard woman fatally shot and dismembered her husband, whom she said raped her. According to her attorney, Gladis Barreras Soto endured 15 years of physical and psychological abuse before turning a gun on spouse Pedro Barragan.

Fourteen-year-old Oak View resident Kali Manley was strangled in December during what prosecutors have alleged was an attempted rape by a man eight years her senior.

And in a horrifying case of domestic violence that same month, hairstylist Vicki Shade, 37, was fatally stabbed by her estranged boyfriend, who had violated restraining orders 15 times before being jailed for stalking her.

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Despite his threats to kill Shade, Roland Sheehan was released on $20,000 bail and a month later followed through on his grim promise during a Dec. 4 standoff with Ventura police.

According to authorities, domestic violence calls to law enforcement agencies more than doubled in the seven years before Shade’s slaying, leaping from 2,733 in 1990 to 5,816 in 1997.

At the same time, agencies dedicated to supporting victims of abuse through shelters and crisis hotlines have experienced skyrocketing cases in recent years.

In the wake of Shade’s stabbing, Ventura County judges increased fivefold the mandatory bail for stalking. They later adopted sweeping bail reforms, making it harder for suspects in crimes such as rape and domestic battery to get out of jail after an arrest.

But Ventura County activists and prosecutors say more needs to be done to educate the public about domestic violence and sexual assault crimes, including the toll they can take on victims.

“This is an issue that cannot be pushed under the carpet,” said Amy Zucchero, a member of the Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence, which organized Wednesday night’s rally.

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The event, now in its second year, featured guest speakers, music and a self-defense demonstration. It culminated with the candlelight march down Main Street.

“I know that a lot of times women who experience sexual assault go through a self-blaming period,” Zucchero said. “ And a lot of times that is perpetrated by the myth that society puts out that ‘she asked for it because she was out late.’

“But when we think about it, nobody deserves to have their body violated no matter what decision they make,” she said. “The more we educate, the more we are going to break these myths apart.”

In 1997, 183 rapes were reported in Ventura County but the actual numbers may be much higher. Dee Corona, supervisor of the district attorney’s sexual assault unit, said one of the biggest hurdle’s facing law enforcement is persuading victims to come forward.

“Many of these crimes are not reported because the victims feel embarrassed,” Corona said, adding that the majority of rapes are committed by acquaintances, such as a husband or boyfriend.

“When a woman is sexually assaulted, her self-esteem, her image of her self and her privacy, are attacked,” Corona said. “Women who are attacked by strangers are afraid to go out. Women who are attacked by significant others or people they trust are afraid to trust.”

Corona said one of the best ways for sex abuse victims to cope is to “come forward and take back the power that has been taken from them by their attacker.”

Such was the theme of the coalition’s “Take Back the Night” rally, which Zucchero said stems from a tradition started in the 1970s when activists marched down streets where women had been raped to rally support for victim rights and educate the public about issues surrounding sexual violence.

At the close of Wednesday’s rally, Livingston read three letters from sexual assault victims. She began with accounts from two adults--one male, one female--who were molested as children. She ended with the rape victim’s letter.

“The candle we carry is symbolic for me of the little flicker of hope and light that all survivors of sexual assault had to carry in order to survive their darkest hour,” Livingston read from the letter. “Together we will march as fighters and survivors.”

FYI

The Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence offers a variety of services, including a 24-hour hotline, shelter for battered women and their children, support groups and counseling services for victims and their families. For more information, call 654-8141.