UCR Students March to Administrative Building to Demand Better Sexual Assault Response

University of California, Riverside students gathered on October 28 to demand improved institutional responses to sexual assault. The group, numbering roughly ten speakers plus the lead organizer, staged a one-hour protest that moved from the Bell Tower to Hinderaker Hall, the administrative building housing the Title IX and Civil Rights Offices.

Maya Chinai, founder of Students for Survivors UCR, led the demonstration. She argued that the university had shown complacency by failing to adequately process reports submitted to campus officials. Chinai cited the statistic that one in four female undergraduate students on college campuses experience rape. She stated, "It is a lack of action. [It’s] the institutions that promised to protect us and their negligence and neglect that is allowing these numbers to grow."

The march began at 1:20 p.m. as participants chanted "We are Jane Doe" and carried signs reading "end rape culture" and "believe survivors." The group formed in response to the Jane Doe v. Cornell University lawsuit, a case brought by a former student against Cornell and seven accused rapists that intensified national discussion about campus sexual assault.

At Hinderaker Hall, Chinai addressed staff inside the building. She said, "Admin of UCR, you may not be rapists but I see your part. We see the part that you play in violence against women." She characterized rape culture as an epidemic and urged students to build accountability among themselves because she believed the institution could not be trusted to provide justice.

Participants shared personal accounts of the reporting process. One anonymous student described spending weekends filling out paperwork for Title IX reports, stating, "they didn’t even fucking read the evidence." Amyrose Evans, another student, addressed administrators directly, noting that women within the administration have experienced the pain of rape culture and want change. Jessica Rehman, a Non-Senate Lecturer in Gender and Sexualities, shared that she was assaulted as a graduate student without administrative support. She invited students to visit her office in room 2047 of the Interdisciplinary North Building for support.

Joseph Anastacio, Vice President of the Office of External Affairs, issued a statement supporting the event. He credited the organizers and noted the prevalence of rape culture in Greek life and male-dominated areas. He said, "I want to be very vocal in throwing my support anywhere I can."

The group returned to the Bell Tower for Chinai’s closing remarks. She said, "We are breaking the cycle of silence that keeps us feeling isolated. That keeps us feeling alone and afraid to speak up. We are here and we are powerful and we will keep fighting."