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CATCALLING, THE “RED PILL”, AND INSTITUTIONAL APATHY PERSIST, AND SLUTWALK’S MESSAGE OF RESISTANCE IS AS VITAL AS EVER
Content warning: the following article directly discusses sexualized violence, rape, victim-blaming, and related issues.
Earlier this fall, students, activists, and community members gathered in downtown Ottawa for the city’s annual SlutWalk, a march that has become a symbol of resistance against rape culture and gender-based violence. Fourteen years after its founding, the movement continues to evolve, and its message isn’t confined to a single event or generation – its purpose of challenging societal attitudes that normalize sexualized violence remains as urgent as ever.
Organized by the Purple Sisters Youth Advisory Committee, SlutWalk has long sought to reclaim language, confront victim-blaming, and provide a public space where survivors can have their voices heard. Participants carried signs reading “Consent is sexy” and chanted “My body, my choice, your body, your choice,” while a newly introduced banner, Solidarity Breaks Silence, invited attendees to share personal messages such as “You are not alone” and “The rape doesn’t define me.”
The event illustrates that the fight against rape culture is happening now. Catcalling and harassment continue to circulate both on and off the University of Ottawa campus, and you have to look as far as r/geegees to find ongoing concerns about harassment and safety.
SlutWalk traces its origins back to 2011, after Toronto police constable Michael Sanguinetti told a campus safety forum, “Women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized.” While he later apologized, the comment reflected a broader societal problem: a culture that excuses sexualized violence and shames survivors, rather than perpetrators.
SlutWalk reclaimed the term “slut” as a badge of empowerment, turning an instrument of oppression into a tool for resistance. The movement quickly gained attention, with Ottawa hosting annual marches ever since.
Understanding the concept of a rape “culture” is central to grasping why movements like SlutWalk remain relevant. Erin Caitlin Galt, a SSHRC doctoral fellow at the University of Ottawa’s Institute of Feminist and Gender Studies, explains that, “Rape culture encapsulates the day-to-day aspects in our society that we interact with that, actually, subliminally, tells us if rape is okay. Rape is always a part of rape culture, but rape culture doesn’t always mean actual rape.”
Language plays a critical role in this process. Galt emphasizes that how we talk about sexualized violence shapes social norms. Terms like “sexualized violence,” instead of “sexual violence,” help frame the discussion accurately and avoid subtle victim-blaming, as violence cannot be sexual in nature, only sexualized.
“If the exercise is to educate, learn, and evolve, we have to be critical of the one part that’s used to exchange ideas — what language are we using around it?” Galt said.
Victim-blaming plays a large role in rape culture, particularly in upholding it. It encourages society to ask survivors how they brought it upon themselves, a framing not applied to any other violent crime, Galt added. Reclaiming words like “slut” disrupts this narrative.
“If we use sluts as a derogatory term, then it is. If we celebrate being sluts, if we celebrate being slutty, if we celebrate being sluts, then it’s not a derogatory term, it’s our term,” Galt explained.
While these conversations unfold on campus, rape culture is evolving online every day. Figureheads of misogynistic ideology like Andrew Tate or Myron Gaines demonstrate the proliferation of incel culture and extreme misogyny digitally. Online spaces provide the forums for echo chambers of incels and “red-pilled” individuals that build and spread rape culture ideology as a natural, inevitable, and even positive thing. This continued persistence and adaptation of rape culture make resistance urgent and complex.
Resistance to rape culture has a long history. SlutWalk represents a tangible, visible version of the struggle against rape culture, while other forms of digital activism, like #MeToo, provide other avenues for disseminating education, awareness, and a hopeful alternative.
At SlutWalk 2025 Ottawa, participants connected local struggles to global issues, including immigration justice and bodily autonomy, reflecting the intersectional nature of systemic violence. Through marches, chalked messages, and resource tables, the event combined education, community support, and public demonstration, making networks of care and resistance visible.
The march also highlighted the personal dimension of resistance. The “Solidarity Breaks Silence” banner allowed participants to share anonymous messages. Organizer Amira Brehaut explained that the goal was to make these testimonies “as visible as possible” and impossible to ignore, underscoring the central purpose of SlutWalk: reclaiming space, voice, and language in a society that often seeks to silence survivors.
So, why do students continue to attend SlutWalk year after year? Partly, because the march is a reminder that the fight against rape culture is ongoing and adapting alongside society. Resistance isn’t a passive endeavor. In the world of doom scrolling and keyboard warriors, SlutWalk continues to offer something tangible, a space where real people can meet and support each other in a fight that alone can feel like an impossible feat.
If you, or someone you know is being impacted by sexualized violence, support is available. Please find the following resources.
Contact 613-234-2266 to access The Sexual Assault Support Centre of Ottawa call or text. More SASC resources are found here. The Ottawa Rape Crisis Center also offers text and call support services at 877-544-6424, and various counseling. If you are in need of shelter due to gender-based violence, seek the following crisis lines: Interval House of Ottawa at 613-234-5181 or Nelson House of Ottawa at 613-225-3129. If you are in immediate danger or feel unsafe, please contact 9-1-1 or reach the University of Ottawa Campus Protection Services at 613-562-5411.
