– CHICAGO, Ill.
Graduate students from the University of Chicago and Northwestern University gathered at Millennium Park here on Jan. 4 to protest the gang rape of a 23-year-old woman in New Delhi.
Participants later presented recommendations aimed at combating crime against women in the Indian capital and held a candlelight vigil in memory of the woman, who died from her injuries and has since been identified by her family as Jyoti Singh Pandey.
According to a press release from the organizers, many participants carries placards demanding “speedy justice” for the victim and “strict conviction” of the suspects.
After the demonstration, participants moved to nearby Wrigley Square, where the organizers initiated a discussion on their policy recommendations.
Their first recommendation advocated for broadening the way rape is defined in the Indian Penal Code, the press release said.
“Incumbent rape laws that include archaic and often imprecise language such as ‘outraging the modesty of women’ need change. All forms of sexual assault, including marital rape, must be punishable by law,” Aman Chitkara, a public policy student at the University of Chicago, was quoted as saying.
Other recommendations included establishing professional counseling centers for rape victims and their families as well as special efforts to improve the plight of Dalit women in villages.
“We need to help more and more rape victims to resume normal lives, as this will reduce the perception of rape as an act of subjugation,” Harsh Taneja, one of the organizers, was quoted as saying. The event ended with a candlelight vigil to “pay homage” to the rape victim and express hope for millions others.
