The Santa Clara Community Action Program brought Slut Walk back to campus on April 10. This year, the event showed up with a new theme, a broader coalition of participating organizations and a first-time organizer who helped shape its creative direction from start to finish. This year’s theme, “Writing is Resistance: Your Story Matters,” centered storytelling as a form of activism, drawing on a feminist lens and placing strong emphasis on BIPOC and LGBTQ+ voices. Chloe Bryant ’29, this year’s program coordinator, is behind the development of the concepts and pointed out that the idea grew from something personal. “Romance novels have become really popular, and they do a great job of spreading love and awareness without people even realizing it,” she said. “These issues are very important, but people don’t want to talk about them. Seeing them through a different light makes it possible.” “You don’t have to say anything out loud, you can just write it down,” Bryant said. “As someone who is friends with victims, their voices are heard, but they don’t have to go out and say it.” Organizing the event at a Jesuit University hasn’t come without tension. Per University policy, organizers were prohibited from directly distributing condoms at the event. This restriction has shaped how SCCAP navigates outreach around sexual health. Chloe Wong ’22, staff advisor for SCCAP, described the workaround they landed on. “Per us being a Jesuit Catholic university, we are not allowed to hand out condoms,” Wong said. “We have figured out ways to do that. We have had condoms in our SCCAP office and on the table. If someone walks in and asks us about SCCAP and takes a condom, you are not directly handing them out.” This approach shows how campus organizations have had to work around University guidelines while still providing students access to sexual health resources. “Even if you’re not a victim of sexual assault or violence, it’s still important to show up,” Bryant said. “Even if you don’t fit into the categories we’re talking about, if you know somebody or you read about it online, then you’re impacted by it.” 📝: @diyachaudhary 📷: @ninaglickphoto @elainez_ly

This past week, the United States women’s national soccer team has been training at Buck Shaw Field, the home field of the Santa Clara soccer teams, to prepare for their upcoming international friendly match against Japan on Saturday, April 11, at 2:30 p.m. at PayPal Park. While the national team practiced on Buck Shaw Field, the Santa Clara women’s soccer team practiced at the same time on the Stanton Soccer Field, facing the Stevens Soccer Training Center. “It’s so cool for our students to see these athletes and how focused they are and how organized the training sessions are and how sharp things are,” said Santa Clara women’s soccer head coach Jerry Smith. “These are today’s legends, and it’s really cool to see them here.” Many stars, including Lindsey Heaps, Trinity Rodman, Sophia Wilson, Rose Lavelle and Alyssa Thompson, were at the stadium practicing with the team. Rodman appeared to be enjoying herself on the practice field, even dancing to popular hit songs by Olivia Dean and Justin Bieber. “Every time the U.S. women have been in San Jose to play, they’ve always played really well. And it’s a great atmosphere there at PayPal Park,” said Smith. “This school is obviously a really strong sports school. Women’s soccer has always been really successful here. They’ve been training at the same time as us every day, so it’s always fun to see. It brings back a lot of memories,” said Wilson, when asked what it’s like to train at Santa Clara with its rich history in women’s soccer. “Every time we step foot on the pitch, we’re here to inspire and show them anything is possible. I think being role models for them is really crucial, and that’s part of our job,” said Heaps, hoping to inspire young girls who dream of playing soccer. 📝: @aneeka.sideline 📷: @ninaglickphoto