Men to walk a mile in women's shoes today

Men in heels will strut across the University of South Florida campus today.

Yes, men in heels - alongside women and families - are marching to stop rape, sexual assault and gender violence this week in the Walk a Mile in Her Shoes Men's March.

The domestic violence awareness event is sponsored by the USF student group N.I.T.E. (Necessary Improvements to Transform our Environment). The group works toward campus safety and student wellness.

In addition to spreading awareness for domestic abuse, the event is personal to Eileen Dabrowski, N.I.T.E. president since 2007.

The USF graduate student was in an abusive relationship, something she tried to hide from friends and family. It wasn't until she was encouraged by a friend to leave her abuser that she knew she had the strength to survive. The 25-year-old also is an ovarian cancer survivor and said her outreach is her way of paying it forward.

"This is my second chance at life, and I'm not going to coast," Dabrowski said. "I believe that if I didn't leave [him], I wouldn't be where I am today."

The march, which coincides with Domestic Awareness Month, takes place at noon with marchers meeting at the USF Marshall Student Center Amphitheatre.

The event gives men the chance to educate the community about a serious subject and to rally the community to take action to prevent sexualized violence, Dabrowski said.

"This [violence] is not OK and it needs to end," Dabrowski said. "Men will put themselves into women's shoes, literally."

The men walk one mile in women's high-heeled shoes provided by organizers (participants can also bring their own). One hundred pairs of women's shoes will be donated to the Family Justice Center of Hillsborough County, Inc.

Last year's march drew roughly 150 people with organizers estimating the turnout to be about 300 participants this year.

The increase is twofold, Dabrowski said, citing an increase in domestic violence community-wide and the group's outreach. She has given 12 presentations across campus leading up to the event, and some nine professors giving students extra credit for participating.

This past summer was especially brutal in Tampa Bay area.

In July, a mother of two and her boyfriend were shot to death. The apparent motive was jealousy, Tampa police said.

That same month, authorities said a man killed his mother and teenage sister because his sister's pregnancy was causing family tension.

Police also say another man killed his girlfriend after a fight with her and her mother got out of hand.
In 2007, there were eight domestic violence homicides in Hillsborough County. In 2008, there were 16, said Nikki Daniels, the executive director of the Family Justice Center in Hillsborough County.

Numbers for the county for 2009 are not yet available, Daniels said, because her organization is still reviewing cases.

Statewide, there have been 86 domestic violence homicides this year compared to a total of 79 in 2008, according to a report released Wednesday by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Out of 1,743 cases nationwide in 2007, more than 51 percent of homicides were committed with a gun, according to report by the Violence Policy Center in Washington, D.C., which studied data compiled by the FBI. Knives and other cutting instruments accounted for 21 percent of the slayings, bodily force 14 percent and blunt objects 7 percent.

One out of four women is sexually assaulted or raped, Dabrowski said. It's a statistic that doesn't sit well with her.

"It hits home, I hear about it happening, a lot," she said. "I can count more women who are victims
than I want to ... I had to get involved."

Joni Bernbaum, outreach coordinator for the USF Advocacy Program, is impressed with the student involvement, she said.

"The students are doing a phenomenal job standing up against this," Bernbaum said.

Walk A Mile in Her Shoes March; noon to 2 p.m., free; USF Marshall Student Center Amphitheater, 4202 E. Fowler Ave., http://www.usfnite.com/