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Monday 11 July 2011

Hundreds gather in Houston for special walk to protest sex crimes

HOUSTON — Hundreds of protestors - some dressing in halter tops, short shorts and stilettos - marched through the Montrose area on Saturday. Their clothes were meant to send a message in what was called a Slutwalk, a national campaign raising awareness about sex crimes.

"It doesn’t matter what a woman is wearing," said Jessica Wilburn, who participated in the walk.

"Only what your mouth says matters," said protestor Diane Schluter.

Those were the messages being sent by hundreds on Saturday during the Slutwalk.

The movement was born out of a comment someone made out of the Toronto Police Department back in January. That person stated that women should avoid dressing like sluts in order to avoid being victimized.

Anger about the comment created protests like the one in Houston across the country.

Lindsay Smith, who organized the protest in Houston, said she’s on a mission to raise awareness about sexual assaults.

"I’m a victim, I’ve been in your shoes," Smith said Saturday morning. "For years, people told me it was your fault, you shouldn’t have gone to that party."

So it might not be a surprise that many of the protestors are sympathetic to a woman named Jamie Leigh Jones, the KBR employee whose claims she was raped by a coworker were rejected by a jury on Friday. KBR said her stories were inconsistent.

But Schluter has a different view.

"Honestly, I thought it was insane. It’s blaming the victim," she said.

And at Saturday’s protest, the goal was to protect the vulnerable no matter how they’re dressed.

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