The “What Were You Wearing?” exhibit (pictured above) supports individuals who are victims of sexual assault. This exhibit, since its opening last year, has attracted a lot of attention from the Geneseo community (Xavier Delcid / photo editor).
Sexual assault is often made to blame the victim. Multiple cases victim-blame because of what the victim was wearing, how they acted prior to the sexual assault and whether they had alcohol in their system. The exhibit “What Were You Wearing” at the Kinetic Gallery in the MacVittie Union aims to help de-stigmatize the belief that people are sexually assaulted because of their physical appearance and attire.
Inside the exhibit are multiple outfits hung up on the wall, each with a note answering the question of what the victims were wearing. Each note details the account of the sexual assault that occurred. Many of the outfits consist of everyday clothing.
One outfit included workout shorts and a t-shirt, implying that the individual had just completed a workout when the assault happened.
“I had been working out, so Nike shorts and a large t-shirt, I guess. I’m sure I smelled bad; I even remember thinking that … think about how bad I must smell. Because I needed to think about anything but what was happening to me,” the note said.
Another outfit consisted of cargo capris and a t-shirt.
“A university t-shirt and cargos. It’s funny, no one has ever asked me that before. They ask me if being raped means I’m gay or if I fought back or how I could ‘let this happen to me,’ but never about my clothes,” the note said.
An additional outfit was a child’s dress.
“A sundress. Months later, my mother would stand in front of my closet and complain about how I never wore any of my dresses anymore. I was six years old,” the note read.
This exhibit first came to Geneseo in fall 2018; the set up included the same outfits and notes next to each one. At that time, too, the exhibit attracted a lot of attention for its powerful message; it was extended multiple times throughout the semester.
This exhibit opens every morning at 8 a.m. and anyone is able to go in and look. This powerful exhibit allows survivors to share their stories while also standing up to the stereotype that it is the victim’s fault. This exhibit shows that it does not matter what the person is wearing, but that sexual assault can happen anywhere at any time, to anyone of any age.
This gallery may give other people the strength to come forward about sexual assault and allow them to get the help and support they need. The discussion created by this exhibit is a big step forward in de-stigmatizing the taboo around the topic of sexual assault in society today.